o 


ll 

REED 

ANTHONY 
GOODMAN 

AN 
AUTOBIOGRAPHY 


- 


)YADA1S 


$ 


HENRY  LOOI 


REED  ANTHONY,   COWMAN.    12010,  $1.50. 

CATTLE  BRANDS.    i2mo,  $1.50. 

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HOUGHTON,  MIFFLIN  &   CO. 

BOSTON  AND  NEW  YORK 


REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 


REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 


AN  AUTOBIOGRAPHY 


BY 


ANDY  ADAMS 


BOSTON   AND   NEW   YORK 

HOUGHTON,  MIFFLIN  AND  COMPANY 
prej^,  Cambridge 

1907 


COPYRIGHT    1907   BY   ANDY   ADAMS 
ALL   RIGHTS   RESERVED 

Published  May  7907 


TO 

CAPTAIN  JOHN  T.  LYTLE 

SECRETARY   OF 

THE   TEXAS   CATTLE   RAISERS'    ASSOCIATION 
FORT    WORTH,    TEXAS 


984779 


CONTENTS 

I.  IN  RETROSPECT 1 

II.   MY  APPRENTICESHIP 18 

III.  A  SECOND  TRIP  TO  FORT  SUMNER        .        .  38 

IV.  A  FATAL  TRIP 55 

V.   SUMMER  OF  '68 72 

VI.   SOWING  WILD  OATS 89 

VII.   "THE  ANGEL" 107 

VIII.   THE  «  LAZY  L  " .124 

IX.  THE  SCHOOL  OF  EXPERIENCE         .        .        .  140 

X.  THE  PANIC  OF  73      .....      154 

XI.  A  PROSPEROUS  YEAR      .        .        .        .        .  171 

XII.   CLEAR  FORK  AND  SHENANDOAH        .        .      189 

XIII.  THE  CENTENNIAL  YEAR         ...        .206 

XIV.  ESTABLISHING  A  NEW  RANCH   .        .        .      224 
XV.   HARVEST  HOME 240 

XVI.   AN  ACTIVE  SUMMER 259 

XVII.   FORESHADOWS 277 

XVIII.   THE  BEGINNING  OF  THE  BOOM          .        .      295 
XIX.   THE    CHEYENNE    AND    ARAPAHOE    CATTLE 

COMPANY 313 

XX.   HOLDING  THE  FORT     .        .        .        .        .      330 

XXI.   THE  FRUITS  OF  CONSPIRACY  ....  347 

XXII.  IN  CONCLUSION  .  366 


REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 


CHAPTER  I 
IN  RETROSPECT 


I  CAN  truthfully  say  that  my  entire  ,,'life  h-Ah  beei» 
spent  with  cattle.  Even  during  my  four  years' 
service  in  the  Confederate  army,  the  greater  por 
tion  was  spent  with  the  commissary  department, 
in  charge  of  its  beef  supplies.  I  was  wounded  early 
in  the  second  year  of  the  war  and  disabled  as  a 
soldier,  but  rather  than  remain  at  home  I  accepted 
a  menial  position  under  a  quartermaster.  Those 
were  strenuous  times.  During  Lee's  invasion  of 
Pennsylvania  we  followed  in  the  wake  of  the  army 
with  over  a  thousand  cattle,  and  after  Gettysburg 
we  led  the  retreat  with  double  that  number.  Near 
the  close  of  the  war  we  frequently  had  no  cattle 
to  hold,  and  I  became  little  more  than  a  camp- 
follower. 

I  was  born  in  the  Shenandoah  Valley,  northern 
Virginia,  May  3,  1840.  My  father  was  a  thrifty 
planter  and  stockman,  owned  a  few  slaves,  and  as 


2  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

early  as  I  can  remember  fed  cattle  every  winter 
for  the  eastern  markets.  Grandfather  Anthony, 
who  died  before  I  was  born,  was  a  Scotchman  who 
had  emigrated  to  the  Old  Dominion  at  an  early 
day,  and  acquired  several  large  tracts  of  land  on 
an  affluent  of  the  Shenandoah.  On  my  paternal 
side  I  never  knew  any  of  my  ancestors,  but  have 
good  cause  to  believe  they  were  adventurers.  My 
mother's  maiden  name  was  Reed;  she  was  of  a 
gemle  family,  who  were  able  to  trace  their  forbears 
beyond  the  colonial  days,  even  to  the  gentry  of 
Eagland.  Generations  of  good  birth  were  reflected 
in  my  mother ;  and  across  a  rough  and  eventful 
life  I  can  distinctly  remember  the  refinement  of 
her  manners,  her  courtesy  to  guests,  her  kindness 
to  child  and  slave. 

My  boyhood  days  were  happy  ones.  I  attended  a 
subscription  school  several  miles  from  home,  riding 
back  and  forth  on  a  pony.  The  studies  were  ele 
mentary,  and  though  I  never  distinguished  myself 
in  my  classes,  I  was  always  ready  to  race  my  pony, 
and  never  refused  to  play  truant  when  the  swim 
ming  was  good.  Evidently  my  father  never  intended 
any  of  his  boys  for  a  professional  career,  though  it 
was  an  earnest  hope  of  my  mother  that  all  of  us 
should  receive  a  college  education.  My  elder  brother 
and  I  early  developed  business  instincts,  buying 
calves  and  accompanying  our  father  on  his  trading 
expeditions.  Once  during  a  vacation,  when  we  were 


IN   RETROSPECT  3 

about  twelve  and  ten  years  old,  both  of  us  crossed 
the  mountains  with  him  into  what  is  now  West 
Virginia,  where  he  bought  about  two  hundred  young 
steers  and  drove  them  back  to  our  home  in  the  val 
ley.  I  must  have  been  blessed  with  an  unfailing 
memory ;  over  fifty  years  have  passed  since  that,  my 
first  trip  from  home,  yet  I  remember  it  vividly  — 
can  recall  conversations  between  my  father  and  the 
sellers  as  they  haggled  over  the  cattle.  I  remember 
the  money,  gold  and  silver,  with  which  to  pay  for 
the  steers,  was  carried  by  my  father  in  ordinary 
saddle-bags  thrown  across  his  saddle.  As  occasion 
demanded,  frequently  the  funds  were  carried  by  a 
negro  man  of  ours,  and  at  night,  when  among 
acquaintances,  the  heavy  saddle-bags  were  thrown 
into  a  corner,  every  one  aware  of  their  contents. 

But  the  great  event  of  my  boyhood  was  a  trip 
to  Baltimore.  There  was  no  railroad  at  the  time, 
and  as  that  was  our  market  for  fat  cattle,  it  was 
necessary  to  drive  the  entire  way.  My  father  had 
made  the  trip  yearly  since  I  could  remember,  the 
distance  being  nearly  two  hundred  miles,  and  gen 
erally  carrying  as  many  as  one  hundred  and  fifty  big 
beeves.  They  traveled  slowly,  pasturing  or  feeding 
grain  on  the  way,  in  order  that  the  cattle  should 
arrive  at  the  market  in  salable  condition.  One  horse 
was  allowed  with  the  herd,  and  on  another  my 
father  rode,  far  in  advance,  to  engage  pasture  or 
feed  and  shelter  for  his  men.  When  on  the  road 


4  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

a  boy  always  led  a  gentle  ox  in  the  lead  of  the 
beeves;  negro  men  walked  on  either  flank,  and 
the  horseman  brought  up  the  rear.  I  used  to  envy 
the  boy  leading  the  ox,  even  though  he  was  a 
darky.  The  negro  boys  on  our  plantation  always 
pleaded  with  "  Mars  "  John,  my  father,  for  the 
privilege ;  and  when  one  of  them  had  made  the  trip 
to  Baltimore  as  a  toll  boy  he  easily  outranked  us 
younger  whites.  I  must  have  made  application  for 
the  position  when  I  was  about  seven  years  old,  for 
it  seemed  an  age  before  my  request  was  granted. 
My  brother,  only  two  years  older  than  I,  had  made 
the  trip  twice,  and  when  I  was  twelve  the  great 
opportunity  came.  My  father  had  nearly  two  hun 
dred  cattle  to  go  to  market  that  year,  and  the  start 
was  made  one  morning  early  in  June.  I  can  dis 
tinctly  see  my  mother  standing  on  the  veranda  of 
our  home  as  I  led  the  herd  by  with  a  big  red  ox, 
trembling  with  fear  that  at  the  final  moment  her 
permission  might  be  withdrawn  and  that  I  should 
have  to  remain  behind.  But  she  never  interfered 
with  my  father,  who  took  great  pains  to  teach  his 
boys  everything  practical  in  the  cattle  business. 

It  took  us  twenty  days  to  reach  Baltimore.  We 
always  started  early  in  the  morning,  allowing  the 
beeves  to  graze  and  rest  along  the  road,  and  se 
curing  good  pastures  for  them  at  night.  Several 
times  it  rained,  making  the  road  soft,  but  I  stripped 
off  my  shoes  and  took  it  barefooted  through  the 


IN   RETROSPECT  5 

mud.  The  lead  ox  was  a  fine,  big  fellow,  each  horn 
tipped  with  a  brass  knob,  and  he  and  I  set  the  pace, 
which  was  scarcely  that  of  a  snail.  The  days  were 
long,  I  grew  desperately  hungry  between  meals, 
and  the  novelty  of  leading  that  ox  soon  lost  its 
romance.  But  I  was  determined  not  to  show  that 
I  was  tired  or  hungry,  and  frequently,  when  my 
father  was  with  us  and  offered  to  take  me  up  be 
hind  him  on  his  horse,  I  spurned  his  offer  and 
trudged  on  till  the  end  of  the  day.  The  mere  driv 
ing  of  the  beeves  would  have  been  monotonous, 
but  the  constant  change  of  scene  kept  us  in  good 
spirits,  and  our  darkies  always  crooned  old  songs 
when  the  road  passed  through  woodlands.  After 
the  beeves  were  marketed  we  spent  a  day  in  the 
city,  and  my  father  took  my  brother  and  me  to 
the  theatre.  Although  the  world  was  unfolding 
rather  rapidly  for  a  country  boy  of  twelve,  it  was 
with  difficulty  that  I  was  made  to  understand 
that  what  we  had  witnessed  on  the  stage  was  but 
mimicry. 

The  third  day  after  reaching  the  city  we  started 
on  our  return.  The  proceeds  from  the  sale  of  the 
cattle  were  sent  home  by  boat.  With  only  two 
horses,  each  of  which  carried  double,  and  walking 
turn  about,  we  reached  home  in  seven  days,  set 
tling  all  bills  on  the  way.  That  year  was  a  type  of 
others  until  I  was  eighteen,  at  which  age  I  could 
guess  within  twenty  pounds  of  the  weight  of  any 


6  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

beef  on  foot,  and  when  I  bought  calves  and  year 
ling  steers  I  knew  just  what  kind  of  cattle  they 
would  make  at  maturity.  In  the  mean  time,  one 
summer  my  father  had  gone  west  as  far  as  the 
State  of  Missouri,  traveling  by  boat  to  Jefferson 
City,  and  thence  inland  on  horseback.  Several  of 
our  neighbors  had  accompanied  him,  all  of  them 
buying  land,  my  father  securing  four  sections.  I 
had  younger  brothers  growing  up,  and  the  year 
my  oldest  brother  attained  his  majority  my  father 
outfitted  him  with  teams,  wagons,  and  two  trusty 
negro  men,  and  we  started  for  the  nearest  point  on 
the  Ohio  River,  our  destination  being  the  new  lands 
in  the  West.  We  embarked  on  the  first  boat, 
drifting  down  the  Ohio,  and  up  the  other  rivers, 
reaching  the  Ultima  Thule  of  our  hopes  within  a 
month.  The  land  was  new ;  I  liked  it ;  we  lived 
on  venison  and  wild  turkeys,  and  when  once  we  had 
built  a  log  house  and  opened  a  few  fields,  we  were 
at  peace  with  the  earth. 

But  this  happy  existence  was  of  short  duration. 
Rumors  of  war  reached  us  in  our  western  elysium, 
and  I  turned  my  face  homeward,  as  did  many 
another  son  of  Virginia.  My  brother  was  sensible 
enough  to  remain  behind  on  the  new  farm ;  but 
with  nothing  to  restrain  me  I  soon  found  myself 
in  St.  Louis.  There  I  met  kindred  spirits,  eager 
for  the  coming  fray,  and  before  attaining  my  ma 
jority  I  was  bearing  arms  and  wearing  the  gray 


IN   RETROSPECT  7 

of  the  Confederacy.  My  regiment  saw  very  little 
service  during  the  first  year  of  the  war,  as  it  was 
stationed  in  the  western  division,  but  early  in  1862 
it  was  engaged  in  numerous  actions. 

I  shall  never  forget  my  first  glimpse  of  the  Texas 
cavalry.  We  had  moved  out  from  Corinth,  under 
cover  of  darkness,  to  attack  Grant  at  Pittsburg 
Landing.  When  day  broke,  orders  were  given  to 
open  out  and  allow  the  cavalry  to  pass  ahead  and 
reconnoitre  our  front.  I  had  always  felt  proud  of 
Virginian  horsemanship,  but  those  Texans  were  in 
a  class  by  themselves.  Centaur-like  they  sat  their 
horses,  and  for  our  amusement,  while  passing  at  full 
gallop,  swung  from  their  saddles  and  picked  up 
hats  and  handkerchiefs.  There  was  something  about 
the  Texans  that  fascinated  me,  and  that  Sunday 
morning  I  resolved,  if  spared,  to  make  Texas  my 
future  home.  I  have  good  cause  to  remember  the 
battle  of  Shiloh,  for  during  the  second  day  I  was 
twice  wounded,  yet  saved  from  falling  into  the 
enemy's  hands. 

My  recovery  was  due  to  youth  and  a  splendid 
constitution.  Within  six  weeks  I  was  invalided 
home,  and  inside  a  few  months  I  was  assigned  to 
the  commissary  department  with  the  army  in  Vir 
ginia.  It  was  while  in  the  latter  service  that  I  made 
the  acquaintance  of  many  Texans,  from  whom  I 
learned  a  great  deal  about  the  resources  of  their 
State, — its  immense  herds  of  cattle,  the  cheapness 


8  HEED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

of  its  lands,  and  its  perpetual  summer.  During  the 
last  year  of  the  war,  on  account  of  their  ability  to 
handle  cattle,  a  number  of  Texans  were  detailed 
to  care  for  the  army's  beef  supply.  From  these 
men  I  received  much  information  and  a  pressing 
invitation  to  accompany  them  home,  and  after  the 
parole  at  Appomattox  I  took  their  address,  promis 
ing  to  join  them  in  the  near  future.  On  my  return 
to  the  old  homestead  I  found  the  place  desolate, 
with  burnt  barns  and  fields  laid  waste.  The  Shen- 
andoah  Valley  had  experienced  war  in  its  dread 
reality,  for  on  every  hand  were  the  charred  remains 
of  once  splendid  homes.  I  had  little  hope  that  the 
country  would  ever  recover,  but  my  father,  stout 
hearted  as  ever,  had  already  begun  anew,  and  after 
helping  him  that  summer  and  fall  I  again  drifted 
west  to  my  brother's  farm. 

The  war  had  developed  a  restless,  vagabond 
spirit  in  me.  I  had  little  heart  to  work,  was  un 
settled  as  to  my  future,  and,  to  add  to  my  other 
troubles,  after  reaching  Missouri  one  of  my  wounds 
reopened.  In  the  mean  time  my  brother  had  mar 
ried,  and  had  a  fine  farm  opened  up.  He  offered 
me  every  encouragement  and  assistance  to  settle 
down  to  the  life  of  a  farmer ;  but  I  was  impatient, 
worthless,  undergoing  a  formative  period  of  early 
manhood,  even  spurning  the  advice  of  father, 
mother,  and  dearest  friends.  If  to-day,  across  the 
lapse  of  years,  the  question  were  asked  what  led 


IN   RETROSPECT  9 

me  from  the  bondage  of  my  discontent,  it  would 
remain  unanswered.  Possibly  it  was  the  advan 
tage  of  good  birth ;  surely  the  prayers  of  a  mother 
had  always  followed  me,  and  my  feet  were  finally 
led  into  the  paths  of  industry.  Since  that  day  of 
uncertainty,  grandsons  have  sat  upon  my  knee, 
clamoring  for  a  story  about  Indians,  the  war,  or 
cattle  trails.  If  I  were  to  assign  a  motive  for 
thus  leaving  a  tangible  record  of  my  life,  it  would 
be  that  my  posterity  —  not  the  present  generation, 
absorbed  in  its  greed  of  gain,  but  a  more  distant 
and  a  saner  one  —  should  be  enabled  to  glean  a 
faint  idea  of  one  of  their  forbears.  A  worthy  and 
secondary  motive  is  to  give  an  idea  of  the  old  West 
and  to  preserve  from  oblivion  a  rapidly  vanishing 
type  of  pioneers. 

My  personal  appearance  can  be  of  little  interest 
to  coming  generations,  but  rather  what  I  felt,  saw, 
and  accomplished.  It  was  always  a  matter  of  regret 
to  me  that  I  was  such  a  poor  shot  with  a  pistol. 
The  only  two  exceptions  worthy  of  mention  were 
mere  accidents.  In  my  boyhood's  home,  in  Vir 
ginia,  my  father  killed  yearly  a  large  number  of 
hogs  for  the  household  needs  as  well  as  for  sup 
plying  our  slave  families  with  bacon.  The  hogs 
usually  ran  in  the  woods,  feeding  and  thriving  on 
the  mast,  but  before  killing  time  we  always  baited 
them  into  the  fields  and  finished  their  fattening 
with  peas  and  corn.  It  was  customary  to  wait  until 


10  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

the  beginning  of  winter,  or  about  the  second  cold 
spell,  to  butcher,  and  at  the  time  in  question  there 
were  about  fifty  large  hogs  to  kill.  It  was  a  gala 
event  with  us  boys,  the  oldest  of  whom  were 
allowed  to  shoot  one  or  more  with  a  rifle.  The 
hogs  had  been  tolled  into  a  small  field  for  the 
killing,  and  towards  the  close  of  the  day  a  number 
of  them,  having  been  wounded  and  requiring  a 
second  or  third  shot,  became  cross.  These  subse 
quent  shots  were  usually  delivered  from  a  six- 
shooter,  and  in  order  to  have  it  at  hand  in  case 
of  a  miss  I  was  intrusted  with  carrying  the  pistol. 
There  was  one  heavy-tusked  five-year-old  stag 
among  the  hogs  that  year  who  refused  to  present 
his  head  for  a  target,  and  took  refuge  in  a  brier 
thicket.  He  was  left  until  the  last,  when  we  all 
sallied  out  to  make  the  final  kill.  There  were  two 
rifles,  and  had  the  chance  come  to  my  father,  I 
think  he  would  have  killed  him  easily ;  but  the  op 
portunity  came  to  a  neighbor,  who  overshot,  merely 
causing  a  slight  wound.  The  next  instant  the  stag 
charged  at  me  from  the  cover  of  the  thickety  fence 
corner.  Not  having  sense  enough  to  take  to  the 
nearest  protection,  I  turned  and  ran  like  a  scared 
wolf  across  the  field,  the  hog  following  me  like  a 
hound.  My  father  risked  a  running  shot,  which 
missed  its  target.  The  darkies  were  yelling,  "  Kun, 
chile  !  Run,  Mars'  Reed !  Shoot !  Shoot !  "  when 
it  occurred  to  me  that  I  had  a  pistol ;  and  point- 


IN   RETROSPECT  11 

ing  it  backward  as  I  ran,  I  blazed  away,  killing 
the  big  fellow  in  his  tracks. 

The  other  occasion  was  years  afterward,  when  I 
was  a  trail  foreman  at  Abilene,  Kansas.  My  herd 
had  arrived  at  that  market  in  bad  condition, 
gaunted  from  almost  constant  stampedes  at  night, 
and  I  had  gone  into  camp  some  distance  from  town 
to  quiet  and  recuperate  them.  That  day  I  was 
sending  home  about  half  my  men,  had  taken  them 
to  the  depot  with  our  wagon,  and  intended  hauling 
back  a  load  of  supplies  to  my  camp.  After  seeing 
the  boys  off  I  hastened  about  my  other  business, 
and  near  the  middle  of  the  afternoon  started  out 
of  town.  The  distance  to  camp  was  nearly  twenty 
miles,  and  with  a  heavy  load,  principally  salt,  I 
knew  it  would  be  after  nightfall  when  I  reached 
there.  About  five  miles  out  of  town  there  was  a 
long,  gradual  slope  to  climb,  and  I  had  to  give 
the  through  team  their  time  in  pulling  to  its  sum 
mit.  Near  the  divide  was  a  small  box  house,  the 
only  one  on  the  road  if  I  remember  rightly,  and 
as  I  was  nearing  it,  four  or  five  dogs  ran  out  and 
scared  my  team.  I  managed  to  hold  them  in  the 
road,  but  they  refused  to  quiet  down,  kicking, 
rearing,  and  plunging  in  spite  of  their  load ;  and 
once  as  they  jerked  me  forward,  I  noticed  there 
was  a  dog  or  two  under  the  wagon,  nipping  at  their 
heels.  There  was  a  six-shooter  lying  on  the  seat 
beside  me,  and  reaching  forward  I  fired  it  down- 


12  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

ward  over  the  end  gate  of  the  wagon.  By  the 
merest  accident  I  hit  a  dog,  who  raised  a  cry,  and 
the  last  I  saw  of  him  he  was  spinning  like  a  top 
and  howling  like  a  wolf.  I  quieted  the  team  as 
soon  as  possible,  and  as  I  looked  back,  there  was  a 
man  and  woman  pursuing  me,  the  latter  in  the  lead. 
I  had  gumption  enough  to  know  that  they  were 
the  owners  of  the  dog,  and  whipped  up  the  horses 
in  the  hope  of  getting  away  from  them.  But  the 
grade  and  the  load  were  against  me,  and  the  next 
thing  I  knew,  a  big,  bony  woman,  with  fire  in  her 
eye,  was  reaching  for  me.  The  wagon  wheel  warded 
her  off,  and  I  leaned  out  of  her  reach  to  the  far 
side,  yet  she  kept  abreast  of  me,  constantly  calling 
for  her  husband  to  hurry  up.  I  was  pouring  the 
whip  into  the  horses,  fearful  lest  she  would  climb 
into  the  wagon,  when  the  hub  of  the  front  wheel 
struck  her  on  the  knee,  knocking  her  down.  I  was 
then  nearing  the  summit  of  the  divide,  and  on  reach 
ing  it,  I  looked  back  and  saw  the  big  woman  giving 
her  husband  the  pommeling  that  was  intended  for 
me.  She  was  altogether  too  near  me  yet,  and  I 
shook  the  lines  over  the  horses,  firing  a  few  shots 
to  frighten  them,  and  we  tore  down  the  farther 
slope  like  a  fire  engine. 

There  are  two  events  in  my  life  that  this  chron 
icle  will  not  fully  record.  One  of  them  is  my 
courtship  and  marriage,  and  the  other  my  connec 
tion  with  a  government  contract  with  the  Indian 


IN  RETROSPECT  13 

department.  Otherwise  my  life  shall  be  as  an 
open  book,  not  only  for  my  own  posterity,  but  that 
he  who  runs  may  read.  It  has  been  a  matter  of 
observation  with  me  that  a  plain  man  like  myself 
scarcely  ever  refers  to  his  love  affairs.  At  my  time 
of  life,  now  near  ing  my  alloted  span,  I  have  little 
sympathy  with  the  great  mass  of  fiction  which  ex 
ploits  the  world-old  passion.  In  no  sense  of  the 
word  am  I  a  well-read  man,  yet  I  am  conscious 
of  the  fact  that  during  my  younger  days  the  love 
story  interested  me ;  but  when  compared  with  the 
real  thing,  the  transcript  is  usually  a  poor  one.  My 
wife  and  I  have  now  walked  up  and  down  the  paths 
of  life  for  over  thirty-five  years,  and,  if  memory 
serves  me  right,  neither  one  of  us  has  ever  men 
tioned  the  idea  of  getting  a  divorce.  In  youth  we 
shared  our  crust  together ;  children  soon  blessed 
and  brightened  our  humble  home,  and  to-day,  sur 
rounded  by  every  comfort  that  riches  can  bestow, 
no  achievement  in  life  has  given  me  such  great 
pleasure,  I  know  no  music  so  sweet,  as  the  prattle 
of  my  own  grandchildren.  Therefore  that  feature 
of  my  life  is  sacred,  and  will  not  be  disclosed  in 
these  pages. 

I  would  omit  entirely  mention  of  the  Indian 
contract,  were  it  not  that  old  friends  may  read 
this,  my  biography,  and  wonder  at  the  omission. 
I  have  no  apologies  to  offer  for  my  connection 
with  the  transaction,  as  its  true  nature  was  con- 


14  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

cealed  from  me  in  the  beginning,  and  a  scandal 
would  have  resulted  had  I  betrayed  friends.  Then 
again,  before  general  amnesty  was  proclaimed  I  was 
debarred  from  bidding  on  the  many  rich  govern 
ment  contracts  for  cattle  because  I  had  served 
in  the  Confederate  army.  Smarting  under  this 
injustice  at  the  time  the  Indian  contract  was 
awarded,  I  question  if  I  was  thoroughly  recon 
structed.  Before  our  disabilities  were  removed, 
we  ex-Confederates  could  do  all  the  work,  run  all 
the  risk,  turn  in  all  the  cattle  in  filling  the  out 
standing  contracts,  but  the  middleman  got  the 
profits.  The  contract  in  question  was  a  blanket 
one,  requiring  about  fifty  thousand  cows  for  deliv 
ery  at  some  twenty  Indian  agencies.  The  use  of 
my  name  was  all  that  was  required  of  me,  as  I  was 
the  only  cowman  in  the  entire  ring.  My  duty  was 
to  bid  on  the  contract ;  the  bonds  would  be  fur 
nished  by  my  partners,  of  which  I  must  have  had 
a  dozen.  The  proposals  called  for  sealed  bids,  in 
the  usual  form,  to  be  in  the  hands  of  the  Depart 
ment  of  the  Interior  before  noon  on  a  certain  day, 
marked  so  and  so,  and  to  be  opened  at  high  noon 
a  week  later.  The  contract  was  a  large  one,  the 
competition  was  ample.  Several  other  Texas 
drovers  besides  myself  had  submitted  bids;  but 
they  stood  no  show  —  I  had  been  furnished  the 
figures  of  every  competitor.  The  ramifications  of 
the  ring  of  which  I  was  the  mere  figure-head  can 


IN   RETROSPECT  15 

be  readily  imagined.  I  sublet  the  contract  to  the 
next  lowest  bidder,  who  delivered  the  cattle,  and 
we  got  a  rake-off  of  a  clean  hundred  thousand 
dollars.  Even  then  there  \vas  little  in  the  trans 
action  for  me,  as  it  required  too  many  people  to 
handle  it,  and  none  of  them  stood  behind  the  door 
at  the  final "  diwy."  In  a  single  year  I  have  since 
cleared  twenty  times  what  my  interest  amounted 
to  in  that  contract  and  have  done  honorably  by 
my  fellowmen.  That  was  my  first,  last,  and  only 
connection  with  a  transaction  that  would  need  de 
odorizing  if  one  described  the  details. 

But  I  have  seen  life,  have  been  witness  to  its 
poetry  and  pathos,  have  drunk  from  the  cup  of 
sorrow  and  rejoiced  as  a  strong  man  to  run  a 
race.  I  have  danced  all  night  where  wealth  and 
beauty  mingled,  and  again  under  the  stars  on  a 
battlefield  I  have  helped  carry  a  stretcher  when 
the  wails  of  the  wounded  on  every  hand  were  like 
the  despairing  cries  of  lost  souls.  I  have  seen  an 
old  demented  man  walking  the  streets  of  a  city, 
picking  up  every  scrap  of  paper  and  scanning  it 
carefully  to  see  if  a  certain  ship  had  arrived  at 
port  —  a  ship  which  had  been  lost  at  sea  over 
forty  years  before,  and  aboard  of  which  were  his 
wife  and  children.  I  was  once  under  the  necessity 
of  making  a  payment  of  twenty-five  thousand  dol 
lars  in  silver  at  an  Indian  village.  There  were 
no  means  of  transportation,  and  I  was  forced  to 


16  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

carry  the  specie  in  on  eight  pack  mules.  The 
distance  was  nearly  two  hundred  miles,  and  as  we 
neared  the  encampment  we  were  under  the  neces 
sity  of  crossing  a  shallow  river.  It  was  summer 
time,  and  as  we  halted  the  tired  mules  to  loosen 
the  lash  ropes,  in  order  to  allow  them  to  drink,  a 
number  of  Indian  children  of  both  sexes,  who  were 
bathing  in  the  river,  gathered  naked  on  either 
embankment  in  bewilderment  at  such  strange 
intruders.  In  the  innocence  of  these  children  of 
the  wild  there  was  no  doubt  inspiration  for  a 
poet ;  but  our  mission  was  a  commercial  one,  and 
we  relashed  the  mules  and  hurried  into  the  village 
with  the  rent  money. 

I  have  never  kept  a  diary.  One  might  wonder 
that  the  human  mind  could  contain  such  a  mass  of 
incident  and  experiences  as  has  been  my  portion, 
yet  I  can  remember  the  day  and  date  of  occurrences 
of  fifty  years  ago.  The  scoldings  of  my  father,  the 
kind  words  of  an  indulgent  mother,  when  not  over 
five  years  of  age,  are  vivid  in  my  memory  as  I 
write  to-day.  It  may  seem  presumptuous,  but  I 
can  give  the  year  and  date  of  starting,  arrival, 
and  delivery  of  over  one  hundred  herds  of  cattle 
which  I  drove  over  the  trail  as  a  common  hand, 
foreman,  or  owner.  Yet  the  warnings  of  years  — 
the  unsteady  step,  easily  embarrassed,  love  of  home 
and  dread  of  leaving  it  —  bid  me  hasten  these  me 
moirs.  Even  my  old  wounds  act  as  a  barometer  in 


IN   RETROSPECT  17 

foretelling  the  coming  of  storms,  as  well  as  the 
change  of  season,  from  both  of  which  I  am  com 
fortably  sheltered.  But  as  I  look  into  the  inquiring 
eyes  of  a  circle  of  grandchildren,  all  anxious  to 
know  my  life  story,  it  seems  to  sweeten  the  task, 
and  I  am  encouraged  to  go  on  with  the  work. 


CHAPTER  II 
MY  APPRENTICESHIP 

DURING  the  winter  of  1865-66   I  corresponded 
with  several  of  my  old  comrades  in  Texas.    Beyond 
a  welcome  which  could  not  be  questioned,  little 
encouragement  was,  with  one  exception,  offered  me 
among  my  old  friends.    It  was  a  period  of  uncer 
tainty  throughout  the  South,  yet  a  cheerful  word 
reached  me  from  an  old  soldier  crony  living  some 
distance  west  of  Fort  Worth  on  the  Brazos  River. 
I  had  great  confidence  in  my  former  comrade,  and 
he  held  out  a  hope,  assuring  me  that  if  I  would 
come,  in  case  nothing  else  offered,  we  could  take 
his  ox  teams  the  next  winter  and  bring  in  a  cargo 
of  buffalo  robes.    The  plains  to  the  westward  of 
Fort  Griffin,  he  wrote,  were  swarming  with  buffalo, 
and  wages  could  be  made  in  killing  them  for  their 
hides.    This  caught  my  fancy  and  I  was  impatient 
to  start  at  once;  but  the  healing  of  my  reopened 
wound  was  slow,  and  it  was  March  before  I  started. 
My  brother  gave  me  a  good  horse  and  saddle, 
twenty-five  dollars  in  gold,  and  I  started  through 
a  country  unknown  to  me  personally.     Southern 
Missouri  had  been  in  sympathy  with  the  Confed- 


MY   APPRENTICESHIP  19 

eracy,  and  whatever  I  needed  while  traveling 
through  that  section  was  mine  for  the  asking.  I 
avoided  the  Indian  Territory  until  I  reached  Fort 
Smith,  where  I  rested  several  days  with  an  old 
comrade,  who  gave  me  instructions  and  routed  me 
across  the  reservation  of  the  Choctaw  Indians,  and 
I  reached  Paris,  Texas,  without  mishap. 

I  remember  the  feeling  that  I  experienced  while 
being  ferried  across  Eed  River.  That  watercourse 
was  the  northern  boundary  of  Texas,  and  while 
crossing  it  I  realized  that  I  was  leaving  home  and 
friends  and  entering  a  country  the  very  name  of 
which  to  the  outside  world  was  a  synonym  for 
crime  and  outlawry.  Yet  some  of  as  good  men  as 
ever  it  was  my  pleasure  to  know  came  from  that 
State,  and  undaunted  I  held  a  true  course  for  my 
destination.  I  was  disappointed  on  seeing  Fort 
Worth,  a  straggling  village  on  the  Trinity  River, 
and,  merely  halting  to  feed  my  mount,  passed  on. 
I  had  a  splendid  horse  and  averaged  thirty  to  forty 
miles  a  day  when  traveling,  and  early  in  April 
reached  the  home  of  my  friend  in  Paolo  Pinto 
County.  The  primitive  valley  of  the  Brazos  was 
enchanting,  and  the  hospitality  of  the  Edwards 
ranch  was  typical  of  my  own  Virginia.  George 
Edwards,  my  crony,  was  a  year  my  junior,  a  native 
of  the  State,  his  parents  having  moved  west  from 
Mississippi  the  year  after  Texas  won  her  independ 
ence  from  Mexico.  The  elder  Edwards  had  moved 


20  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

to  his  present  home  some  fifteen  years  previous, 
carrying  with  him  a  stock  of  horses  and  cattle, 
which  had  increased  until  in  1866  he  was  regarded 
as  one  of  the  substantial  ranchmen  in  the  Brazos 
valley.  The  ranch  house  was  a  stanch  one,  built 
at  a  time  when  defense  was  to  be  considered  as 
well  as  comfort,  and  was  surrounded  by  fine  corn 
fields.  The  only  drawback  I  could  see  there  was 
that  there  was  no  market  for  anything,  nor  was 
there  any  money  in  the  country.  The  consumption 
of  such  a  ranch  made  no  impression  on  the  increase 
of  its  herds,  which  grew  to  maturity  with  no  de 
mand  for  the  surplus. 

I  soon  became  impatient  to  do  something.  George 
Edwards  had  likewise  lost  four  years  in  the  army, 
and  was  as  restless  as  myself.  He  knew  the  coun 
try,  but  the  only  employment  in  sight  for  us  was 
as  teamsters  with  outfits,  freighting  government 
supplies  to  Fort  Griffin.  I  should  have  jumped  at 
the  chance  of  driving  oxen,  for  I  was  anxious  to 
stay  in  the  country,  and  suggested  to  George  that 
we  ride  up  to  Griffin.  But  the  family  interposed, 
assuring  us  that  there  was  no  occasion  for  engag 
ing  in  such  menial  work,  and  we  folded  our  arms 
obediently,  or  rode  the  range  under  the  pretense 
of  looking  after  the  cattle.  I  might  as  well  admit 
right  here  that  my  anxiety  to  get  away  from  the 
Edwards  ranch  was  fostered  by  the  presence  of 
several  sisters  of  my  former  comrade.  Miss  Ger- 


MY   APPRENTICESHIP  21 

trude  was  only  four  years  my  junior,  a  very  dan 
gerous  age,  and  in  spite  of  all  resolutions  to  the 
contrary,  I  felt  myself  constantly  slipping.  No 
thing  but  my  poverty  and  the  hopelessness  of  it 
kept  me  from  falling  desperately  in  love. 

But  a  temporary  relief  came  during  the  latter 
part  of  May.  Reports  came  down  the  river  that  a 
firm  of  drovers  were  putting  up  a  herd  of  cattle 
for  delivery  at  Fort  Sumner,  New  Mexico.  Their 
headquarters  were  at  Belknap,  a  long  day's  ride 
above,  on  the  Brazos ;  and  immediately,  on  receipt 
of  the  news,  George  and  I  saddled,  and  started  up 
the  river.  The  elder  Edwards  was  very  anxious 
to  sell  his  beef-cattle  and  a  surplus  of  cow-horses, 
and  we  were  commissioned  to  offer  them  to  the 
drovers  at  prevailing  prices.  On  arriving  at  Bel- 
knap  we  met  the  pioneer  drover  of  Texas,  Oliver 
Loving,  of  the  firm  of  Loving  &  Goodnight,  but 
were  disappointed  to  learn  that  the  offerings  in 
making  up  the  herd  were  treble  the  drover's  require 
ments  ;  neither  was  there  any  chance  to  sell  horses. 
But  an  application  for  work  met  with  more  favor. 
Mr.  Loving  warned  us  of  the  nature  of  the  country, 
the  dangers  to  be  encountered,  all  of  which  we 
waived,  and  were  accordingly  employed  at  forty 
dollars  a  month  in  gold.  The  herd  was  to  start 
early  in  June.  George  Edwards  returned  home  to 
report,  but  I  was  immediately  put  to  work,  as  the 
junior  member  of  the  firm  was  then  out  receiving 


22  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

cattle.  They  had  established  a  camp,  and  at  the 
time  of  our  employment  were  gathering  beef  steers 
in  Lovirig's  brand  and  holding  the  herd  as  it 
arrived,  so  that  I  was  initiated  into  my  duties  at 
once. 

I  was  allowed  to  retain  iny  horse,  provided  he  did 
his  share  of  the  work.  A  mule  and  three  range  horses 
were  also  allotted  to  me,  and  I  was  cautioned  about 
their  care.  There  were  a  number  of  saddle  mules 
in  the  remuda,  and  Mr.  Loving  explained  that  the 
route  was  through  a  dry  country,  and  that  experi 
ence  had  taught  him  that  a  mule  could  withstand 
thirst  longer  than  a  horse.  I  was  a  new  man  in 
the  country,  and  absorbed  every  word  and  idea  as  a 
sponge  does  water.  With  the  exception  of  roping, 
I  made  a  hand  from  the  start.  The  outfit  treated 
me  courteously,  there  was  no  concealment  of  my 
past  occupation,  and  I  soon  had  the  friendship  of 
every  man  in  the  camp.  It  was  some  little  time 
before  I  met  the  junior  partner,  Charlie  Goodnight, 
a  strapping  young  fellow  of  about  thirty,  who  had 
served  all  through  the  war  in  the  frontier  battalion 
of  Texas  Rangers.  The  Comanche  Indians  had 
been  a  constant  menace  on  the  western  frontier 
of  the  State,  and  during  the  rebellion  had  allied 
themselves  with  the  Federal  side,  and  harassed 
the  settlements  along  the  border.  It  required  a 
regiment  of  mounted  men  to  patrol  the  frontier 
from  Red  River  to  the  coast,  as  the  Comanches 


MY  APPRENTICESHIP  23 

claimed  the  whole  western  half  of  the  State  as  their 
hunting  grounds. 

Early  in  June  the  herd  began  to  assume  its  re 
quired  numbers.  George  Edwards  returned,  and 
we  naturally  became  bunkies,  sharing  our  blankets 
and  having  the  same  guard  on  night-herd.  The 
drovers  encouraged  all  the  men  employed  to  bring 
along  their  firearms,  and  when  we  were  ready  to 
start  the  camp  looked  like  an  arsenal.  I  had  a 
six-shooter,  and  my  bunkie  brought  me  a  needle- 
gun  from  the  ranch,  so  that  I  felt  armed  for  any 
emergency.  Each  of  the  men  had  a  rifle  of  some 
make  or  other,  while  a  few  of  them  had  as  many 
as  four  pistols,  —  two  in  their  belts  and  two  in 
saddle  holsters.  It  looked  to  me  as  if  this  was 
to  be  a  military  expedition,  and  I  began  to  wonder 
if  I  had  not  had  enough  war  the  past  few  years, 
but  kept  quiet.  The  start  was  made  June  10,  1866, 
from  the  Brazos  Kiver,  in  what  is  now  Young 
County,  the  herd  numbering  twenty-two  hundred 
big  beeves.  A  chuck-wagon,  heavily  loaded  with 
supplies  and  drawn  by  six  yoke  of  fine  oxen,  a 
remuda  of  eighty-five  saddle  horses  and  mules, 
together  with  seventeen  men,  constituted  the  outfit. 
Fort  Sumner  lay  to  the  northwest,  and  I  was  mildly 
surprised  when  the  herd  bore  off  to  the  southwest. 
This  was  explained  by  young  Goodnight,  who  was 
in  charge  of  the  herd,  saying  that  the  only  route 
then  open  or  known  was  on  our  present  course  to 


24  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

the  Pecos  River,  and  thence  up  that  stream  to  our 
destination. 

Indian  sign  was  noticed  a  few  days  after  start 
ing.  Goodnight  and  Loving  both  read  it  as  easily 
as  if  it  had  been  print,  —  the  abandoned  camps, 
the  course  of  arrival  and  departure,  the  number 
of  horses,  indicating  who  and  what  they  were, 
war  or  hunting  parties  —  everything  apparently 
simple  and  plain  as  an  alphabet  to  these  plains 
men.  Around  the  camp-fire  at  night  the  chronicle 
of  the  Comanche  tribe  for  the  last  thirty  years  was 
reviewed,  and  their  overbearing  and  defiant  atti 
tude  towards  the  people  of  Texas  was  discussed,  not 
for  my  benefit,  as  it  was  common  history.  Then  for 
the  first  time  I  learned  that  the  Comanches  had 
once  mounted  ten  thousand  warriors,  had  frequently 
raided  the  country  to  the  coast,  carrying  off  horses 
and  white  children,  even  dictating  their  own  terms 
of  peace  to  the  republic  of  Texas.  At  the  last 
council,  called  for  the  purpose  of  negotiating  for 
the  return  of  captive  white  children  in  possession 
of  the  Comanches,  the  assembly  had  witnessed  a 
dramatic  termination.  The  same  indignity  had  been 
offered  before,  and  borne  by  the  whites,  too  weak 
to  resist  the  numbers  of  the  Comanche  tribe.  In 
this  latter  instance,  one  of  the  war  chiefs,  in  spurn 
ing  the  remuneration  offered  for  the  return  of  a 
certain  white  girl,  haughtily  walked  into  the  centre 
of  the  council,  where  an  insult  could  be  seen  by  all. 


MY  APPRENTICESHIP  25 

His  act,  a  disgusting  one,  was  anticipated,  as  it  was 
not  the  first  time  it  had  been  witnessed,  when  one 
of  the  Texans  present  drew  a  six-shooter  and  killed 
the  chief  in  the  act.  The  hatchet  of  the  Comanche 
was  instantly  dug  up,  and  had  not  been  buried  at 
the  time  we  were  crossing  a  country  claimed  by  him 
as  his  hunting  ground. 

Yet  these  drovers  seemed  to  have  no  fear  of  an 
inferior  race.  We  held  our  course  without  a  halt, 
scarcely  a  day  passing  without  seeing  more  or  less 
fresh  sign  of  Indians.  After  crossing  the  South 
Fork  of  the  Brazos,  we  were  attacked  one  morning 
just  at  dawn,  the  favorite  hour  of  the  Indian  for 
a  surprise.  Four  men  were  on  herd  with  the  cattle 
and  one  near  by  with  the  remuda,  our  night  horses 
all  securely  tied  to  the  wagon  wheels.  A  feint  attack 
was  made  on  the  commissary,  but  under  the  leader 
ship  of  Goodnight  a  majority  of  us  scrambled  into 
our  saddles  and  rode  to  the  rescue  of  the  remuda, 
the  chief  objective  of  the  surprise.  Two  of  the  boys 
from  the  herd  had  joined  the  horse  wrangler,  and 
on  our  arrival  all  three  were  wickedly  throwing 
lead  at  the  circling  Indians.  The  remuda  was  run 
ning  at  the  time,  and  as  we  cut  through  between  it 
and  the  savages  we  gave  them  the  benefit  of  our 
rifles  and  six-shooter  in  passing.  The  shots  turned 
the  saddle  stock  back  towards  our  camp  and  the 
mounted  braves  continued  on  their  course,  not 
willing  to  try  issues  with  us,  although  they  out- 


26  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

numbered  us  three  to  one.  A  few  arrows  had 
imbedded  themselves  in  the  ground  around  camp 
at  the  first  assault,  but  once  our  rifles  were  able  to 
distinguish  an  object  clearly,  the  Indians  kept  well 
out  of  reach.  The  cattle  made  a  few  surges,  but 
once  the  remuda  was  safe,  there  was  an  abundance 
of  help  in  holding  them,  and  they  quieted  down 
before  sunrise.  The  Comanches  had  no  use  for 
cattle,  except  to  kill  and  torture  them,  as  they 
preferred  the  flesh  of  the  buffalo,  and  once  our 
saddle  stock  and  the  contents  of  the  wagon  were 
denied  them,  they  faded  into  the  dips  of  the  plain. 
The  journey  was  resumed  without  the  delay  of 
an  hour.  Our  first  brush  with  the  noble  red  man 
served  a  good  purpose,  as  we  were  doubly  vigilant 
thereafter  whenever  there  was  cause  to  expect  an 
attack.  There  was  an  abundance  of  water,  as  we 
followed  up  the  South  Fork  and  its  tributaries, 
passing  through  Buffalo  Gap,  which  was  afterward 
a  well-known  landmark  on  the  Texas  and  Montana 
cattle  trail.  Passing  over  the  divide  between  the 
waters  of  the  Brazos  and  Concho,  we  struck  the 
old  Butterfield  stage  route,  running  by  way  of  Fort 
Concho  to  El  Paso,  Texas,  on  the  Kio  Grande. 
This  stage  road  was  the  original  Staked  Plain,  sur 
veyed  and  located  by  General  John  Pope  in  1846. 
The  route  was  originally  marked  by  stakes,  until 
it  became  a  thoroughfare,  from  which  the  whole  of 
northwest  Texas  afterward  took  its  name.  There 


MY   APPRENTICESHIP  27 

was  a  ninety-six  mile  dry  drive  between  the  head 
waters  of  the  Concho  and  Horsehead  Crossing  on 
the  Pecos,  and  before  attempting  it  we  rested  a 
few  days.  Here  Indians  made  a  second  attack  on 
us,  and  although  as  futile  as  the  first,  one  of  the 
horse  wranglers  received  an  arrow  in  the  shoulder. 
In  attempting  to  remove  it  the  shaft  separated 
from  the  steel  arrowhead,  leaving  the  latter  im 
bedded  in  the  lad's  shoulder.  We  were  then  one 
hundred  and  twelve  miles  distant  from  Fort  Concho, 
the  nearest  point  where  medical  relief  might  be 
expected.  The  drovers  were  alarmed  for  the  man's 
welfare ;  it  was  impossible  to  hold  the  herd  longer, 
so  the  young  fellow  volunteered  to  make  the  ride 
alone.  He  was  given  the  best  horse  in  the  remuda, 
and  with  the  falling  of  darkness  started  for  Fort 
Concho.  I  had  the  pleasure  of  meeting  him  after 
ward,  as  happy  as  he  was  hale  and  hearty. 

The  start  across  the  arid  stretch  was  made  at 
noon.  Every  hoof  had  been  thoroughly  watered  in 
advance,  and  with  the  heat  of  summer  on  us  it 
promised  to  be  an  ordeal  to  man  and  beast.  But 
Loving  had  driven  it  before,  and  knew  fully  what 
was  before  him  as  we  trailed  out  under  a  noonday 
sun.  An  evening  halt  was  made  for  refreshing  the 
inner  man,  and  as  soon  as  darkness  settled  over 
us  the  herd  was  again  started.  We  were  conscious 
of  the  presence  of  Indians,  and  deceived  them  by 
leaving  our  camp-fire  burning,  but  holding  our 


28  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

effects  closely  together  throughout  the  night,  the 
remuda  even  mixing  with  the  cattle.  When  day 
broke  we  were  fully  thirty  miles  from  our  noon 
camp  of  the  day  before,  yet  with  the  exception  of 
an  hour's  rest  there  was  never  a  halt.  A  second 
day  and  night  were  spent  in  forging  ahead,  though 
it  is  doubtful  if  we  averaged  much  over  a  mile 
an  hour  during  that  time.  About  fifteen  miles 
out  from  the  Pecos  we  were  due  to  enter  a  canon 
known  as  Castle  Mountain  Gap,  some  three  or  four 
miles  long,  the  exit  of  which  was  in  sight  of  the 
river.  We  were  anxious  to  reach  the  entrance  of 
this  canon  before  darkness  on  the  third  day,  as  we 
could  then  cut  the  cattle  into  bunches,  the  cliffs 
on  either  side  forming  a  lane.  Our  horses  were  as 
good  as  worthless  during  the  third  day,  but  the 
saddle  mules  seemed  to  stand  grief  nobly,  and  by 
dint  of  ceaseless  effort  we  reached  the  canon  and 
turned  the  cattle  loose  into  it.  This  was  the  turn 
ing-point  in  the  dry  drive.  That  night  two  men 
took  half  the  remuda  and  went  through  to  Horse- 
head  Crossing,  returning  with  them  early  the  next 
morning,  and  we  once  more  had  fresh  mounts.  The 
herd  had  been  nursed  through  the  canon  during 
the  night,  and  although  it  was  still  twelve  miles  to 
the  river,  I  have  always  believed  that  those  beeves 
knew  that  water  was  at  hand.  They  walked  along 
briskly;  instead  of  the  constant  moaning,  their 
heads  were  erect,  bawling  loud  and  deep.  The 


MY   APPRENTICESHIP  29 

oxen  drawing  the  wagon  held  their  chains  taut, 
and  the  commissary  moved  forward  as  if  drawn  by 
a  fresh  team.  There  was  no  attempt  to  hold  the 
herd  compactly,  and  within  an  hour  after  starting 
on  our  last  lap  the  herd  was  strung  out  three  miles. 
The  rear  was  finally  abandoned,  and  when  half  the 
distance  was  covered,  the  drag  cattle  to  the  number 
of  fully  five  hundred  turned  out  of  the  trail  and 
struck  direct  for  the  river.  They  had  scented  the 
water  over  five  miles,  and  as  far  as  control  was  con 
cerned  the  herd  was  as  good  as  abandoned,  except 
that  the  water  would  hold  them. 

Horsehead  Crossing  was  named  by  General 
Pope.  There  is  a  difference  of  opinion  as  to  the 
origin  of  the  name,  some  contending  that  it  was 
due  to  the  meanderings  of  the  river,  forming  a 
horse's  head,  and  others  that  the  surveying  party 
was  surprised  by  Indians  and  lost  their  stock. 
None  of  us  had  slept  for  three  nights,  and  the  feel 
ing  of  relief  on  reaching  the  Pecos,  shared  alike 
by  man  and  beast,  is  indescribable.  Unless  one  has 
endured  such  a  trial,  only  a  faint  idea  of  its  hard 
ships  can  be  fully  imagined  —  the  long  hours 
of  patient  travel  at  a  snail's  pace,  enveloped  by 
clouds  of  dust  by  day,  and  at  night  watching  every 
shadow  for  a  lurking  savage.  I  have  since  slept 
many  a  time  in  the  saddle,  but  in  crossing  that  arid 
belt  the  one  consuming  desire  to  reach  the  water 
ahead  benumbed  every  sense  save  watchfulness. 


30  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

All  the  cattle  reached  the  river  before  the  middle 
of  the  afternoon,  covering  a  front  of  five  or  six 
miles.  The  banks  of  the  Pecos  were  abrupt,  there 
being  fully  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  feet  of 
deep  water  in  the  channel  at  the  stage  crossing. 
Entrance  to  the  ford  consisted  of  a  wagon-way,  cut 
through  the  banks,  and  the  cattle  crowded  into 
the  river  above  and  below,  there  being  but  one  exit 
on  either  side.  Some  miles  above,  the  beeves  had 
found  several  passageways  down  to  the  water,  but 
in  drifting  up  and  down  stream  they  missed  these 
entrances  on  returning.  A  rally  was  made  late  that 
afternoon  to  rout  the  cattle  out  of  the  river-bed, 
one  half  the  outfit  going  above,  the  remainder 
working  around  Horsehead,  where  the  bulk  of  the 
herd  had  watered.  I  had  gone  upstream  with  Good 
night,  but  before  we  reached  the  upper  end  of  the 
cattle  fresh  Indian  sign  was  noticed.  There  was 
enough  broken  country  along  the  river  to  shelter 
the  redskins,  but  we  kept  in  the  open  and  cau 
tiously  examined  every  brake  within  gunshot  of 
an  entrance  to  the  river.  We  succeeded  in  getting 
all  the  animals  out  of  the  water  before  dark,  with 
the  exception  of  one  bunch,  where  the  exit  would 
require  the  use  of  a  mattock  before  the  cattle  could 
climb  it,  and  a  few  head  that  had  bogged  in  the 
quicksand  below  Horsehead  Crossing.  There  was 
little  danger  of  a  rise  in  the  river,  the  loose  contin 
gent  had  a  dry  sand-bar  on  which  to  rest,  and  as 


MY   APPRENTICESHIP  31 

the  Indians  had  no  use  for  them  there  was  little 
danger  of  their  being  molested  before  morning. 

We  fell  back  about  a  mile  from  the  river  and 
camped  for  the  night.  Although  we  were  all  dead 
for  sleep,  extra  caution  was  taken  to  prevent  a 
surprise,  either  Goodnight  or  Loving  remaining 
on  guard  over  the  outfit,  seeing  that  the  men 
kept  awake  on  herd  and  that  the  guards  changed 
promptly.  Charlie  Goodnight  owned  a  horse  that 
he  contended  could  scent  an  Indian  five  hundred 
yards,  and  I  have  never  questioned  the  statement. 
He  had  used  him  in  the  Ranger  service.  The  horse 
by  various  means  would  show  his  uneasiness  in  the 
immediate  presence  of  Indians,  and  once  the  fol 
lowing  summer  we  moved  camp  at  midnight  on  ac 
count  of  the  warnings  of  that  same  horse.  We  had 
only  a  remuda  with  us  at  the  time,  but  another 
outfit  encamped  with  us  refused  to  go,  and  they 
lost  half  their  horses  from  an  Indian  surprise  the 
next  morning  and  never  recovered  them.  I  remem 
ber  the  ridicule  which  was  expressed  at  our  moving 
camp  on  the  warnings  of  a  horse.  "Injun-bit," 
"  Man-afraid-of-his-horses,"  were  some  of  the  terms 
applied  to  us,  —  yet  the  practical  plainsman  knew 
enough  to  take  warning  from  his  dumb  beast.  Fear, 
no  doubt,  gives  horses  an  unusual  sense  of  smell, 
and  I  have  known  them  to  detect  the  presence  of  a 
bear,  on  a  favorable  wind,  at  an  incredible  distance. 

The   night  passed  quietly,  and  early  the  next 


32  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

morning  we  rode  to  recover  the  remainder  of  the 
cattle.  An  effort  was  also  made  to  rescue  the  bogged 
ones.  On  approaching  the  river,  we  found  the 
beeves  still  resting  quietly  on  the  sand-bar.  But 
we  had  approached  them  at  an  angle,  for  directly 
over  head  and  across  the  river  was  a  brake  over 
grown  with  thick  brush,  a  splendid  cover  in  which 
Indians  might  be  lurking  in  the  hope  of  ambush 
ing  any  one  who  attempted  to  drive  out  the  beeves. 
Two  men  were  left  with  a  single  mattock  to  cut 
out  and  improve  the  exit,  while  the  rest  of  us 
reconnoitered  the  thickety  motte  across  the  river. 
Goodnight  was  leery  of  the  thicket,  and  suggested 
firing  a  few  shots  into  it.  We  all  had  long-range 
guns,  the  distance  from  bank  to  bank  was  over  two 
hundred  yards,  and  a  fusillade  of  shots  was  accord 
ingly  poured  into  the  motte.  To  my  surprise  we 
were  rewarded  by  seeing  fully  twenty  Indians  skulk 
out  of  the  upper  end  of  the  cover.  Every  man  raised 
his  sights  and  gave  them  a  parting  volley,  but  a 
mesquite  thicket,  in  which  their  horses  were  se 
creted,  soon  sheltered  them  and  they  fell  back  into 
the  hills  on  the  western  side  of  the  river.  With 
the  coast  thus  cleared,  half  a  dozen  of  us  rode  down 
into  the  river-bed  and  drove  out  the  last  contingent 
of  about  three  hundred  cattle.  Goodnight  informed 
us  that  those  Indians  had  no  doubt  been  watching 
us  for  days,  and  cautioned  us  never  to  give  a  Co- 
manche  an  advantage,  advice  which  I  never  forgot. 


MY   APPRENTICESHIP  33 

On  our  return  every  one  of  the  bogged  cattle 
had  been  freed  except  two  heavy  beeves.  These 
animals  were  mired  above  the  ford,  in  rather  deep 
water,  and  it  was  simply  impossible  to  release 
them.  The  drovers  were  anxious  to  cross  the  river 
that  afternoon,  and  a  final  effort  was  made  to  res 
cue  the  two  steers.  The  oxen  were  accordingly 
yoked,  and,  with  all  the  chain  available,  were 
driven  into  the  river  and  fastened  on  to  the  near 
est  one.  Three  mounted  drivers  had  charge  of  the 
team,  and  when  the  word  was  given  six  yoke  of 
cattle  bowed  their  necks  and  threw  their  weight 
against  the  yokes ;  but  the  quicksand  held  the  steer 
in  spite  of  all  their  efforts.  The  chain  was  freed 
from  it,  and  the  oxen  were  brought  around  and 
made  fast  again,  at  an  angle  and  where  the  foot 
ing  was  better  for  the  team.  Again  the  word  was 
given,  and  as  the  six  yoke  swung  round,  whips  and 
ropes  were  plied  amid  a  general  shouting,  and  the 
team  brought  out  the  steer,  but  with  a  broken  neck. 
There  were  no  regrets,  and  our  attention  was  at 
once  given  to  the  other  steer.  The  team  circled 
around,  every  available  chain  was  brought  into 
use,  in  order  to  afford  the  oxen  good  footing  on  a 
straight-away  pull  with  the  position  in  which  the 
beef  lay  bogged.  The  word  was  given  for  an  easy 
pull,  the  oxen  barely  stretched  their  chains,  and 
were  stopped.  Goodnight  cautioned  the  drivers 
that  unless  the  pull  was  straight  ahead  another 


34  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

neck  would  be  broken.  A  second  trial  was  made ; 
the  oxen  swung  and  weaved,  the  chains  fairly  cried, 
the  beef's  head  went  under  water,  but  the  team 
was  again  checked  in  time  to  keep  the  steer  from 
drowning.  After  a  breathing  spell  for  oxen  and 
victim,  the  call  was  made  for  a  rush.  A  driver 
was  placed  over  every  yoke  and  the  word  given, 
and  the  oxen  fell  to  their  knees  in  the  struggle, 
whips  cracked  over  their  backs,  ropes  were  plied 
by  every  man  in  charge,  and,  amid  a  din  of  pro 
fanity  applied  to  the  struggling  cattle,  the  team 
fell  forward  in  a  general  collapse.  At  first  it  was 
thought  the  chain  had  parted,  but  as  the  latter 
came  out  of  the  water  it  held  in  its  iron  grasp  the 
horns  and  a  portion  of  the  skull  of  the  dying  beef. 
Several  of  us  rode  out  to  the  victim,  whose  brain 
lay  bare,  still  throbbing  and  twitching  with  life. 
Rather  than  allow  his  remains  to  pollute  the  river, 
we  made  a  last  pull  at  an  angle,  and  the  dead  beef 
was  removed. 

We  bade  Horsehead  Crossing  farewell  that  after 
noon  and  camped  for  the  night  above  Dagger  Bend. 
)  Our  route  now  lay  to  the  northwest,  or  up  the  Pecos 
River.  We  were  then  out  twenty-one  days  from 
Belknap,  and  although  only  half  way  to  our  destina 
tion,  the  worst  of  it  was  considered  over.  There 
was  some  travel  up  and  down  the  Pecos  valley,  the 
route  was  even  then  known  as  the  Chisum  trail, 
and  afterward  extended  as  far  north  as  Fort  Logan 


MY  APPRENTICESHIP  35 

in  Colorado  and  other  government  posts  in  Wyo 
ming.  This  cattle  trace  should  never  be  confounded 
with  the  Chisholm  trail,  first  opened  by  a  half-breed 
named  Jesse  Chisholm,  which  ran  from  Red  River 
Station  on  the  northern  boundary  of  Texas  to  va 
rious  points  in  Kansas.  In  cutting  across  the  bends 
of  the  Rio  Pecos  we  secured  water  each  day  for 
the  herd,  although  we  were  frequently  under  the 
necessity  of  sloping  down  the  banks  with  mattocks 
to  let  the  cattle  into  the  river.  By  this  method  it 
often  took  us  three  or  four  hours  to  water  the  herd. 
Until  we  neared  Fort  Sumner  precaution  never  re 
laxed  against  an  Indian  surprise.  Their  sign  was 
seen  almost  daily,  but  as  there  were  weaker  outfits 
than  ours  passing  through  we  escaped  any  further 
molestation. 

The  methods  of  handling  such  a  herd  were  a 
constant  surprise  to  me,  as  well  as  the  schooling 
of  these  plainsmen  drovers.  Goodnight  had  come 
to  the  plains  when  a  boy  of  ten,  and  was  a  thor 
ough  master  of  their  secrets.  On  one  occasion,  about 
midway  between  Horsehead  Crossing  and  our  des 
tination,  difficulty  was  encountered  in  finding  an 
entrance  to  the  river  on  account  of  its  abrupt 
banks.  It  was  late  in  the  day,  and  in  order  to 
insure  a  quiet  night  with  the  cattle  water  became 
an  urgent  necessity.  Our  young  foreman  rode 
ahead  and  found  a  dry,  sandy  creek,  its  bed  fully 
fifty  yards  wide,  but  no  water,  though  the  sand 


36  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

was  damp.  The  herd  was  held  back  until  sunset, 
when  the  cattle  were  turned  into  the  creek  bed 
and  held  as  compactly  as  possible.  The  heavy 
beeves  naturally  walked  back  and  forth,  up  and 
down,  the  sand  just  moist  enough  to  aggravate 
them  after  a  day's  travel  under  a  July  sun.  But 
the  tramping  soon  agitated  the  sands,  and  within 
half  an  hour  after  the  herd  had  entered  the  dry 
creek  the  water  arose  in  pools,  and  the  cattle  drank 
to  their  hearts'  content.  As  dew  falls  at  night, 
moisture  likewise  rises  in  the  earth,  and  with  the 
twilight  hour,  the  agitation  of  the  sands,  and  the 
weight  of  the  cattle,  a  spring  was  produced  in 
the  desert  waste. 

Fort  Sumner  was  a  six-company  post  and  the 
agency  of  the  Apaches  and  Navajos.  These  two 
tribes  numbered  over  nine  thousand  people,  and 
our  herd  was  intended  to  supply  the  needs  of  the 
military  post  and  these  Indians.  The  contract  was 
held  by  Patterson  &  Koberts,  eligible  by  virtue  of 
having  cast  their  fortunes  with  the  victor  in  "  the 
late  unpleasantness,"  and  otherwise  fine  men.  We 
reached  the  post  on  the  20th  of  July.  There  was 
a  delay  of  several  days  before  the  cattle  were  ac 
cepted,  but  all  passed  the  inspection  with  the  ex 
ception  of  about  one  hundred  head.  These  were 
cattle  which  had  not  recuperated  from  the  dry 
drive.  Some  few  were  footsore  or  thin  in  flesh, 
but  taken  as  a  whole  the  delivery  had  every  ear- 


MY   APPRENTICESHIP  37 

mark  of  an  honest  one.  Fortunately  this  remnant 
was  sold  a  few  days  later  to  some  Colorado  men, 
and  we  were  foot-loose  and  free.  Even  the  oxen 
had  gone  in  on  the  main  delivery,  and  harnesses 
were  accordingly  bought,  a  light  tongue  fitted  to 
the  wagon,  and  we  were  ready  to  start  homeward. 
Mules  were  substituted  for  the  oxen,  and  we  aver 
aged  forty  miles  a  day  returning,  almost  itching 
for  an  Indian  attack,  as  we  had  supplied  ourselves 
with  ammunition  from  the  post  sutler.  The  trip 
had  been  a  financial  success  (the  government  was 
paying  ten  cents  a  pound  for  beef  on  foot),  friendly 
relations  had  been  established  with  the  holders  of 
the  award,  and  we  hastened  home  to  gather  and 
drive  another  herd. 


CHAPTER  III 
A  SECOND  TRIP  TO  FORT  SUMNER 

ON  the  return  trip  we  traveled  mainly  by  night. 
The  proceeds  from  the  sale  of  the  herd  were  in  the 
wagon,  and  had  this  fact  been  known  it  would  have 
been  a  tempting  prize  for  either  bandits  or  In 
dians.  After  leaving  Horsehead  Crossing  we  had 
the  advantage  of  the  dark  of  the  moon,  as  it  was  a 
well-known  fact  that  the  Comanches  usually  choose 
moonlight  nights  for  their  marauding  expeditions. 
Another  thing  in  our  favor,  both  going  and  return 
ing,  was  the  lightness  of  travel  westward,  it  having 
almost  ceased  during  the  civil  war,  though  in  '66 
it  showed  a  slight  prospect  of  resumption.  Small 
bands  of  Indians  were  still  abroad  on  horse-stealing 
forays,  but  the  rich  prizes  of  wagon  trains  bound  for 
El  Paso  or  Santa  Fe  no  longer  tempted  the  noble 
red  man  in  force.  This  was  favorable  wind  to  our 
sail,  but  these  plainsmen  drovers  predicted  that, 
once  traffic  westward  was  resumed,  the  Comanche 
and  his  ally  would  be  about  the  first  ones  to  know 
it.  The  redskins  were  constantly  passing  back  and 
forth,  to  and  from  their  reservation  in  the  Indian 
Territory,  and  news  travels  fast  even  among  savages. 


A  SECOND  TRIP  TO  FORT  SUMNER    39 

We  reached  the  Brazos  River  early  in  August. 
As  the  second  start  was  not  to  be  made  until  the 
latter  part  of  the  following  month,  a  general  settle 
ment  was  made  with  the  men  and  all  reengaged  for 
the  next  trip.  I  received  eighty  dollars  in  gold  as  my 
portion,  it  being  the  first  money  I  ever  earned  as  a 
citizen.  The  past  two  months  were  a  splendid  ex 
perience  for  one  going  through  a  formative  period, 
and  I  had  returned  feeling  that  I  was  once  more 
a  man  among  men.  All  the  uncertainty  as  to  my 
future  had  fallen  from  me,  and  I  began  to  look  for 
ward  to  the  day  when. I  also  might  be  the  owner  of 
lands  and  cattle.  There  was  no  good  reason  why  I 
should  not,  as  the  range  was  as  free  as  it  was  bound 
less.  There  were  any  quantity  of  wild  cattle  in  the 
country  awaiting  an  owner,  and  a  good  mount  of 
horses,  a  rope,  and  a  branding  iron  were  all  the 
capital  required  to  start  a  brand.  I  knew  the  suc 
cess  which  my  father  had  made  in  Virginia  before 
the  war  and  had  seen  it  repeated  on  a  smaller  scale 
by  my  elder  brother  in  Missouri,  but  here  was  a 
country  which  discounted  both  of  those  in  rearing 
cattle  without  expense.  Under  the  best  reasoning 
at  my  command,  I  had  reached  the  promised  land, 
and  henceforth  determined  to  cast  my  fortunes  with 
Texas. 

Rather  than  remain  idle  around  the  Loving  head 
quarters  for  a  month,  I  returned  with  George 
Edwards  to  his  home.  Altogether  too  cordial  a 


40  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

welcome  was  extended  us,  but  I  repaid  the  hospital 
ity  of  the  ranch  by  relating  our  experiences  of  trail 
and  Indian  surprise.  Miss  Gertrude  was  as  charm 
ing  as  ever,  but  the  trip  to  Sumner  and  back  had 
cooled  my  ardor  and  I  behaved  myself  as  an  accept 
able  guest  should.  The  time  passed  rapidly,  and  on 
the  last  day  of  the  month  we  returned  to  Belknap. 
Active  preparations  were  in  progress  for  the  driving 
of  the  second  herd,  oxen  had  been  secured,  and  a 
number  of  extra  fine  horses  were  already  added  to 
the  saddle  stock.  The  remuda  had  enjoyed  a  good 
month's  rest  and  were  in  strong  working  flesh,  and 
within  a  few  days  all  the  boys  reported  for  duty. 
The  senior  member  of  the  firm  was  the  owner  of  a 
large  number  of  range  cattle,  and  it  was  the  inten 
tion  to  round  up  and  gather  as  many  of  his  beeves 
as  possible  for  the  coming  drive.  We  should  have 
ample  time  to  do  this ;  by  waiting  until  the  latter 
part  of  the  month  for  starting,  it  was  believed  that 
few  Indians  would  be  encountered,  as  the  time  was 
nearing  for  their  annual  buffalo  hunt  for  robes  and 
a  supply  of  winter  meat.  This  was  a  gala  occasion 
with  the  tribes  which  depended  on  the  bison  for  food 
and  clothing;  and  as  the  natural  hunting  grounds 
of  the  Comanches  and  Kiowas  lay  south  of  Red 
River,  the  drovers  considered  that  that  would  be 
an  opportune  time  to  start.  The  Indians  would  no 
doubt  confine  their  operations  to  the  first  few  tiers 
of  counties  in  Texas,  as  the  robes  and  dried  meat 


A   SECOND  TRIP  TO  FORT   SUMNER    41 

would  tax  the  carrying  capacity  of  their  horses  re 
turning,  making  it  an  object  to  kill  their  supplies 
as  near  their  winter  encampment  as  possible. 

Some  twenty  days  were  accordingly  spent  in 
gathering  beeves  along  the  main  Brazos  and  Clear 
Fork.  Our  herd  consisted  of  about  a  thousand  in 
the  straight  ranch  brand,  and  after  receiving  and 
road-branding  five  hundred  outside  cattle  we  were 
ready  to  start.  Sixteen  men  constituted  our  num 
bers,  the  horses  were  culled  down  until  but  five 
were  left  to  the  man,  and  with  the  previous  arma 
ment  the  start  was  made.  Never  before  or  since 
have  I  enjoyed  such  an  outing  as  this  was  until 
we  struck  the  dry  drive  on  approaching  the  Pecos 
River.  The  absence  of  the  Indians  was  correctly 
anticipated,  and  either  their  presence  elsewhere, 
preying  on  the  immense  buffalo  herds,  or  the  drift 
of  the  seasons,  had  driven  countless  numbers  of 
that  animal  across  our  pathway.  There  were  days 
and  days  that  we  were  never  out  of  sight  of  the  feed 
ing  myriads  of  these  shaggy  brutes,  and  at  night 
they  became  a  menace  to  our  sleeping  herd.  Dur 
ing  the  day,  when  the  cattle  were  strung  out  in  trail 
formation,  we  had  difficulty  in  keeping  the  two 
species  separated,  but  we  shelled  the  buffalo  right 
and  left  and  moved  forward.  Frequently,  when  they 
occupied  the  country  ahead  of  us,  several  men  rode 
forward  and  scattered  them  on  either  hand  until 
a  right  of  way  was  effected  for  the  cattle  to  pass. 


42  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

While  they  remained  with  us  we  killed  our  daily 
meat  from  their  numbers,  and  several  of  the  boys 
secured  fine  robes.  They  were  very  gentle,  but 
when  occasion  required  could  give  a  horse  a  good 
race,  bouncing  along,  lacking  grace  in  flight. 

Our  cook  was  a  negro.  One  day  as  we  were  near- 
ing  Buffalo  Gap,  a  number  of  big  bulls,  attracted 
by  the  covered  wagon,  approached  the  commissary, 
the  canvas  sheet  of  which  shone  like  a  white  flag. 
The  wagon  was  some  distance  in  the  rear,  and  as 
the  buffalo  began  to  approach  it  they  would  scare 
and  circle  around,  but  constantly  coming  nearer  the 
object  of  their  curiosity.  The  darky  finally  became 
alarmed  for  fear  they  would  gore  his  oxen,  and 
unearthed  an  old  Creedmoor  rifle  which  he  carried 
in  the  wagon.  The  gun  could  be  heard  for  miles, 
and  when  the  cook  opened  on  the  playful  denizens 
of  the  plain,  a  number  of  us  hurried  back,  sup 
posing  it  was  an  Indian  attack.  When  within  a 
quarter-mile  of  the  wagon  and  the  situation  became 
clear,  we  took  it  more  leisurely,  but  the  fusillade 
never  ceased  until  we  rode  up  and  it  dawned  on 
the  darky's  mind  that  rescue  was  at  hand.  He  had 
halted  his  team,  and  from  a  secure  position  in  the 
front  end  of  the  wagon  had  shot  down  a  dozen 
buffalo  bulls.  Pure  curiosity  and  the  blood  of  their 
comrades  had  kept  them  within  easy  range  of  the 
murderous  Creedmoor ;  and  the  frenzied  negro,  sup 
posing  that  his  team  might  be  attacked  any  moment, 


A  SECOND  TRIP  TO  FORT   SUMNER    43 

had  mown  down  a  circle  of  the  innocent  animals. 
We  charged  and  drove  away  the  remainder,  after 
which  we  formed  a  guard  of  honor  in  escorting  the 
commissary  until  its  timid  driver  overtook  the  herd. 
The  last  of  the  buffalo  passed  out  of  sight  be 
fore  we  reached  the  headwaters  of  the  Concho. 
In  crossing  the  dry  drive  approaching  the  Pecos 
we  were  unusually  fortunate.  As  before,  we  rested 
in  advance  of  starting,  and  on  the  evening  of 
the  second  day  out  several  showers  fell,  cooling 
the  atmosphere  until  the  night  was  fairly  chilly. 
The  rainfall  continued  all  the  following  day  in  a 
gentle  mist,  and  with  little  or  no  suffering  to  man 
or  beast  early  in  the  afternoon  we  entered  the 
canon  known  as  Castle  Mountain  Gap,  and  the  dry 
drive  was  virtually  over.  Horsehead  Crossing  was 
reached  early  the  next  morning,  the  size  of  the 
herd  making  it  possible  to  hold  it  compactly,  and 
thus  preventing  any  scattering  along  that  stream. 
There  had  been  no  freshets  in  the  river  since  June, 
and  the  sandy  sediment  had  solidified,  making  a 
safe  crossing  for  both  herd  and  wagon.  After  the 
usual  rest  of  a  few  days,  the  herd  trailed  up  the 
Pecos  with  scarcely  an  incident  worthy  of  mention. 
Early  in  November  we  halted  some  distance  below 
Fort  Sumner,  where  we  were  met  by  Mr.  Loving, 
—  who  had  gone  on  to  the  post  in  our  advance,  — 
with  the  report  that  other  cattle  had  just  been 
accepted,  and  that  there  was  no  prospect  of  an 


44  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

immediate  delivery.  In  fact,  the  outlook  was  any 
thing  but  encouraging,  unless  we  wintered  ours 
and  had  them  ready  for  the  first  delivery  in  the 
spring. 

The  herd  was  accordingly  turned  back  to  Bosque 
Grande  on  the  river,  and  we  went  into  permanent 
quarters.  There  was  a  splendid  winter  range  all 
along  the  Pecos,  and  we  loose-herded  the  beeves 
or  rode  lines  in  holding  them  in  the  different 
bends  of  the  river,  some  of  which  were  natural  in- 
closures.  There  was  scarcely  any  danger  of  Indian 
molestation  during  the  winter  months,  and  with 
the  exception  of  a  few  severe  "northers"  which 
swept  down  the  valley,  the  cattle  did  comparatively 
well.  Tents  were  secured  at  the  post;  corn  was 
purchased  for  our  saddle  mules  ;  and  except  during 
storms  little  or  no  privation  was  experienced  during 
the  winter  in  that  southern  climate.  Wood  was 
plentiful  in  the  grove  in  which  we  were  encamped, 
and  a  huge  fireplace  was  built  out  of  clay  and 
sticks  in  the  end  of  each  tent,  assuring  us  comfort 
against  the  elements. 

The  monotony  of  existence  was  frequently  broken 
by  the  passing  of  trading  caravans,  both  up  and 
down  the  river.  There  was  a  fair  trade  with  the 
interior  of  Mexico,  as  well  as  in  various  settle 
ments  along  the  Eio  Grande  and  towns  in  north 
ern  New  Mexico.  When  other  means  of  diversion 
failed  we  had  recourse  to  Sumner,  where  a  sutler's 


A  SECOND   TRIP  TO   FORT   SUMNER    45 

bar  and  gambling  games  flourished.  But  the  most 
romantic  traveler  to  arrive  or  pass  during  the 
winter  was  Captain  Burleson,  late  of  the  Confed 
eracy.  As  a  sportsman  the  captain  was  a  gem  of 
the  first  water,  carrying  with  him,  besides  a  herd 
of  nearly  a  thousand  cattle,  three  race-horses,  sev 
eral  baskets  of  fighting  chickens,  and  a  pack  of 
hounds.  He  had  a  large  Mexican  outfit  in  charge 
of  his  cattle,  which  were  in  bad  condition  on  their 
arrival  in  March,  he  having  drifted  about  all  win 
ter,  gambling,  racing  his  horses,  and  fighting  his 
chickens.  The  herd  represented  his  winnings.  As 
we  had  nothing  to  match,  all  we  could  offer  was  our 
hospitality.  Captain  Burleson  went  into  camp  below 
us  on  the  river  and  remained  our  neighbor  until  we 
rounded  up  and  broke  camp  in  the  spring.  He  had 
been  as  far  west  as  El  Paso  during  the  winter,  and 
was  then  drifting  north  in  the  hope  of  finding  a 
market  for  his  herd.  We  indulged  in  many  hunts, 
and  I  found  him  the  true  gentleman  and  sportsman 
in  every  sense  of  the  word.  As  I  recall  him  now, 
he  was  a  lovable  vagabond,  and  for  years  afterward 
stories  were  told  around  Fort  Sumner  of  his  won 
derful  nerve  as  a  poker  player. 

Early  in  April  an  opportunity  occurred  for  a 
delivery  of  cattle  to  the  post.  Ours  were  the  only 
beeves  in  sight,  those  of  Captain  Burleson  not 
qualifying,  and  a  round-up  was  made  and  the  herd 
tendered  for  inspection.  Only  eight  hundred  were 


46  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

received,  which  was  quite  a  disappointment  to  the 
drovers,  as  at  least  ninety  per  cent  of  the  ten 
der  filled  every  qualification.  The  motive  in  re 
ceiving  the  few  soon  became  apparent,  when  a 
stranger  appeared  and  offered  to  buy  the  remain 
ing  seven  hundred  at  a  ridiculously  low  figure.  But 
the  drovers  had  grown  suspicious  of  the  contractors 
and  receiving  agent,  and,  declining  the  offer,  went 
back  and  bought  the  herd  of  Captain  Burleson. 
Then,  throwing  the  two  contingents  together,  and 
boldly  announcing  their  determination  of  driving 
to  Colorado,  they  started  the  herd  out  past  Fort 
Sumner  with  every  field-glass  in  the  post  leveled 
on  us.  The  military  requirements  of  Sumner,  for 
its  own  and  Indian  use,  were  well  known  to  the 
drovers,  and  a  scarcity  of  beef  was  certain  to  occur 
at  that  post  before  other  cattle  could  be  bargained 
for  and  arrive.  My  employers  had  evidently  figured 
out  the  situation  to  a  nicety,  for  during  the  fore 
noon  of  the  second  day  out  from  the  fort  we  were 
overtaken  by  the  contractors.  Of  course  they  threw 
on  the  government  inspector  all  the  blame  for  the 
few  cattle  received,  and  offered  to  buy  five  or  six 
hundred  more  out  of  the  herd.  But  the  shoe  was 
on  the  other  foot  now,  the  drovers  acting  as  inde 
pendently  as  the  proverbial  hog  on  ice.  The  herd 
never  halted,  the  contractors  followed  up,  and  when 
we  went  into  camp  that  evening  a  trade  was  closed 
on  one  thousand  steers  at  two  dollars  a  head  ad- 


A  SECOND  TRIP  TO   FORT   SUMNER    4^ 

vance  over  those  which  were  received  but  a  few 
days  before.  The  oxen  were  even  reserved,  and 
after  delivering  the  beeves  at  Sumner  we  continued 
on  northward  with  the  remnant,  nearly  all  of  which 
were  the  Burleson  cattle. 

The  latter  part  of  April  we  arrived  at  the  Colo 
rado  line.  There  we  were  halted  by  the  authorities 
of  that  territory,  under  some  act  of  quarantine 
against  Texas  cattle.  We  went  into  camp  on  the 
nearest  water,  expecting  to  prove  that  our  little 
herd  had  wintered  at  Fort  Sumner,  and  were  there 
fore  immune  from  quarantine,  when  buyers  arrived 
from  Trinidad,  Colorado.  The  steers  were  a  mixed 
lot,  running  from  a  yearling  to  big,  rough  four 
and  five  year  olds,  and  when  Goodnight  returned 
from  Sumner  with  a  certificate,  attested  to  by 
every  officer  of  that  post,  showing  that  the  cat 
tle  had  wintered  north  of  latitude  34,  a  trade  was 
closed  at  once,  even  the  oxen  going  in  at  the  phe 
nomenal  figures  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  a 
yoke.  We  delivered  the  herd  near  Trinidad,  going 
into  that  town  to  outfit  before  returning.  The  ne 
cessary  alterations  were  made  to  the  wagon,  mules 
were  harnessed  in,  and  we  started  home  in  gala 
spirits.  In  a  little  over  thirty  days  my  employers 
had  more  than  doubled  their  money  on  the  Burle 
son  cattle  and  were  naturally  jubilant. 

The  proceeds  of  the  Trinidad  sale  were  carried 
in  the  wagon  returning,  though  we  had  not  as  yet 


48  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

collected  for  the  second  delivery  at  Summer.  The 
songs  of  the  birds  mixed  with  our  own  as  we  trav 
eled  homeward,  and  the  freshness  of  early  sum 
mer  on  the  primitive  land,  as  it  rolled  away  in  dips 
and  swells,  made  the  trip  a  delightful  outing.  Fort 
Sumner  was  reached  within  a  week,  where  we  halted 
a  day  and  then  started  on,  having  in  the  wagon  a 
trifle  over  fifty  thousand  dollars  in  gold  and  silver. 
At  Sumner  two  men  made  application  to  accompany 
us  back  to  Texas,  and  as  they  were  well  armed 
and  mounted,  and  numbers  were  an  advantage, 
they  were  made  welcome.  Our  winter  camp  at 
Bosque  Grande  was  passed  with  but  a  single  glance 
as  we  dropped  down  the  Pecos  valley  at  the  rate 
of  forty  miles  a  day.  Little  or  no  travel  was  en 
countered  en  route,  nor  was  there  any  sign  of  In 
dians  until  the  afternoon  of  our  reaching  Horse- 
head  Crossing.  While  passing  Dagger  Bend,  four 
miles  above  the  ford,  Goodnight  and  a  number  of 
us  boys  were  riding  several  hundred  yards  in  ad 
vance  of  the  wagon,  telling  stories  of  old  sweet 
hearts.  The  road  made  a  sudden  bend  around  some 
sand-hills,  and  the  advance  guard  had  passed  out 
of  sight  of  the  rear,  when  a  fresh  Indian  trail  was 
cut ;  and  as  we  reined  in  our  mounts  to  examine 
the  sign,  we  were  fired  on.  The  rifle-shots,  followed 
by  a  flight  of  arrows,  passed  over  us,  and  we  took 
to  shelter  like  flushed  quail.  I  was  riding  a  good 
saddle  horse  and  bolted  off  on  the  opposite  side 


A  SECOND  TRIP   TO   FORT   SUMNER    49 

of  the  road  from  the  shooting;  but  in  the  scat 
tering  which  ensued  a  number  of  mules  took  down 
the  road.  One  of  the  two  men  picked  up  at  the 
post  was  a  German,  whose  mule  stampeded  after 
his  mates,  and  who  received  a  galling  fire  from  the 
concealed  Indians,  the  rest  of  us  turning  to  the 
nearest  shelter.  With  the  exception  of  this  one 
man,  all  of  us  circled  back  through  the  mesquite 
brush  and  reached  the  wagon,  which  had  halted. 
Meanwhile  the  shooting  had  attracted  the  men 
behind,  who  charged  through  the  sand-dunes, 
flanking  the  Indians,  who  immediately  decamped. 
Security  of  the  remuda  and  wagon  was  a  first  con 
sideration,  and  danger  of  an  ambush  prevented  our 
men  from  following  up  the  redskins.  Order  was 
soon  restored,  when  we  proceeded,  and  shortly  met 
the  young  German  coming  back  up  the  road,  who 
merely  remarked  on  meeting  us,  "  Dem  Injuns  shot 
at  me." 

The  Indians  had  evidently  not  been  expecting  us. 
From  where  they  turned  out  and  where  the  attack 
was  made  we  back-trailed  them  in  the  road  for 
nearly  a  mile.  They  had  simply  heard  us  coming, 
and,  supposing  that  the  advance  guard  was  all  there 
was  in  the  party,  had  made  the  attack  and  were  in 
turn  themselves  surprised  at  our  numbers.  But  the 
warning  was  henceforth  heeded,  and  on  reaching 
the  crossing  more  Indian  sign  was  detected.  Sev 
eral  large  parties  had  evidently  crossed  the  river 


50  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

that  morning,  and  were  no  doubt  at  that  moment 
watching  us  from  the  surrounding  hills.  The  canon 
of  Castle  Mountain  Gap  was  well  adapted  for  an 
Indian  ambush ;  and  as  it  was  only  twelve  miles 
from  the  ford  to  its  mouth,  we  halted  within  a  short 
distance  of  the  entrance,  as  if  encamping  for  the 
night.  All  the  horses  under  saddle  were  picketed 
fully  a  quarter  mile  from  the  wagon,  —  easy  marks 
for  poor  Lo,  —  and  the  remuda  was  allowed  to 
wander  at  will,  an  air  of  perfect  carelessness  pre 
vailing  in  the  camp.  From  the  sign  which  we  had 
seen  that  day,  there  was  little  doubt  but  there  were 
in  the  neighborhood  of  five  hundred  Indians  in  the 
immediate  vicinity  of  Horsehead  Crossing,  and  we 
did  everything  we  could  to  create  the  impression 
that  we  were  tenderfeet.  But  with  the  falling  of 
darkness  every  horse  was  brought  in  and  we  har 
nessed  up  and  started,  leaving  the  fire  burning  to 
identify  our  supposed  camp.  The  drovers  gave  our 
darky  cook  instructions,  in  case  of  an  attack  while 
passing  through  the  Gap,  never  to  halt  his  team, 
but  push  ahead  for  the  plain.  About  one  third  of 
us  took  the  immediate  lead  of  the  wagon,  the 
remuda  following  closely,  and  the  remainder  of 
the  men  bringing  up  the  rear.  The  moon  was  on 
the  wane  and  would  not  rise  until  nearly  midnight, 
and  for  the  first  few  miles,  or  until  we  entered  the 
canon,  there  was  scarce  a  sound  to  disturb  the  still 
ness  of  the  night.  The  sandy  road  even  muffled  the 


A  SECOND   TRIP  TO   FORT   SUMNER    51 

noise  of  the  wagon  and  the  tramping  of  horses ;  but 
once  we  entered  that  rocky  canon,  the  rattling  of 
our  commissary  seemed  to  summon  every  Comanche 
and  his  ally  to  come  and  rob  us.  There  was  never 
a  halt,  the  reverberations  of  our  caravan  seeming 
to  reecho  through  the  Gap,  resounding  forward 
and  back,  until  our  progress  must  have  been  audible 
at  Horsehead  Crossing.  But  the  expected  never 
happens,  and  within  an  hour  we  reached  the  sum 
mit  of  the  plain,  where  the  country  was  open  and 
clear  and  an  attack  could  have  been  easily  repelled. 
Four  fresh  mules  had  been  harnessed  in  for  the 
night,  and  striking  a  free  gait,  we  put  twenty  miles 
of  that  arid  stretch  behind  us  before  the  moon  rose. 
A  short  halt  was  made  after  midnight,  for  a  change 
of  teams  and  saddle  horses,  and  then  we  continued 
our  hurried  travel  until  near  dawn. 

Some  indistinct  objects  in  our  front  caused  us 
to  halt.  It  looked  like  a  caravan,  and  we  hailed 
it  without  reply.  Several  of  us  dismounted  and 
crept  forward,  but  the  only  sign  of  life  was  a  dull, 
buzzing  sound  which  seemed  to  issue  from  an  outfit 
of  parked  wagons.  The  report  was  laid  before  the 
two  drovers,  who  advised  that  we  await  the  dawn, 
which  was  then  breaking,  as  it  was  possible  that 
the  caravan  had  been  captured  and  robbed  by  In 
dians.  A  number  of  us  circled  around  to  the  far 
ther  side,  and  as  we  again  approached  the  wagons 
in  the  uncertain  light  we  hailed  again  and  received 


52  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

in  reply  a  shot,  which  cut  off  the  upper  lobe  of 
one  of  the  boys'  ears.  We  hugged  the  ground  for 
some  little  time,  until  the  presence  of  our  outfit 
was  discovered  by  the  lone  guardian  of  the  cara 
van,  who  welcomed  us.  He  apologized,  saying  that 
on  awakening  he  supposed  we  were  Indians,  not 
having  heard  our  previous  challenge,  and  fired  on 
us  under  the  impulse  of  the  moment.  He  was  a 
well-known  trader  by  the  name  of  "  Honey  "  Allen, 
and  was  then  on  his  way  to  El  Paso,  having  pulled 
out  on  the  dry  stretch  about  twenty-five  miles  and 
sent  his  oxen  back  to  water.  His  present  cargo 
consisted  of  pecans,  honey,  and  a  large  number  of 
colonies  of  live  bees,  the  latter  having  done  the 
buzzing  on  our  first  reconnoitre.  At  his  destina 
tion,  so  he  informed  us,  the  pecans  were  worth 
fifty  cents  a  quart,  the  honey  a  dollar  a  pound,  and 
the  bees  one  hundred  dollars  a  hive.  After  repair 
ing  the  damaged  ear,  we  hurried  on,  finding  Allen's 
oxen  lying  around  the  water  on  our  arrival.  I  met 
him  several  years  afterward  in  Denver,  Colorado, 
dressed  to  kill,  barbered,  and  highly  perfumed. 
He  had  just  sold  eighteen  hundred  two-year-old 
steers  and  had  twenty-five  thousand  dollars  in  the 
bank.  "  Son,  let  me  tell  you  something,"  said  he, 
as  we  were  taking  a  drink  together ;  "  that  Pecos 
country  was  a  dangerous  region  to  pick  up  an 
honest  living  in.  I  'm  going  back  to  God's  coun 
try,  —  back  where  there  ain't  no  Injuns." 


A  SECOND  TRIP   TO   FORT   SUMNER    53 

Yet  Allen  died  in  Texas.  There  was  a  charm 
in  the  frontier  that  held  men  captive.  I  always 
promised  myself  to  return  to  Virginia  to  spend  the 
declining  years  of  my  life,  but  the  fulfillment  never 
came.  I  can  now  realize  how  idle  was  the  expecta 
tion,  having  seen  others  make  the  attempt  and  fail. 
I  recall  the  experience  of  an  old  cowman,  laboring 
under  a  similar  delusion,  who,  after  nearly  half  a 
century  in  the  Southwest,  concluded  to  return  to 
the  scenes  of  his  boyhood.  He  had  made  a  sub 
stantial  fortune  in  cattle,  and  had  fought  his  way 
through  the  vicissitudes  of  the  frontier  until  suc 
cess  crowned  his  efforts.  A  large  family  had  in 
the  mean  time  grown  up  around  him,  and  under 
the  pretense  of  giving  his  children  the  advantages 
of  an  older  and  established  community  he  sold  his 
holdings  and  moved  back  to  his  native  borough. 
Within  six  months  he  returned  to  the  straggling 
village  which  he  had  left  on  the  plains,  bringing 
the  family  with  him.  Shortly  afterwards  I  met 
him,  and  anxiously  inquired  the  cause  of  his  re 
turn.  "  Well,  Reed,"  said  he,  "  I  can't  make  you 
understand  near  as  well  as  though  you  had  tried 
it  yourself.  You  see  I  was  a  stranger  in  my  native 
town.  The  people  were  all  right,  I  reckon,  but  I 
found  out  that  it  was  me  who  had  changed.  I  tried 
to  be  sociable  with  them,  but  honest,  Reed,  I  just 
couldn't  stand  it  in  a  country  where  no  one  ever 
asked  you  to  take  a  drink." 


54  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

A  week  was  spent  in  crossing  the  country  be 
tween  the  Concho  and  Brazos  rivers.  Not  a  day 
passed  but  Indian  trails  were  cut,  all  heading 
southward,  and  on  a  branch  of  the  Clear  Fork  we 
nearly  ran  afoul  of  an  encampment  of  forty  teepees 
and  lean-tos,  with  several  hundred  horses  in  sight. 
But  we  never  varied  our  course  a  fraction,  passing 
within  a  quarter  mile  of  their  camp,  apparently 
indifferent  as  to  whether  they  showed  fight  or 
allowed  us  to  pass  in  peace.  Our  bluff  had  the 
desired  effect ;  but  we  made  it  an  object  to  reach 
Fort  Griffin  near  midnight  before  camping.  The 
Comanche  and  his  ally  were  great  respecters,  not 
only  of  their  own  physical  welfare,  but  of  the  Henri 
and  Spencer  rifle  with  which  the  white  man  killed 
the  buffalo  at  the  distance  of  twice  the  flight  of  an 
arrow.  When  every  advantage  was  in  his  favor  — 
ambush  and  surprise  —  Lo  was  a  warrior  bold; 
otherwise  he  used  discretion. 


CHAPTER  IV 
A  FATAL  TRIP 

BEFOKE  leaving  Fort  Sumner  an  agreement  had 
been  entered  into  between  my  employers  and  the 
contractors  for  a  third  herd.  The  delivery  was  set 
for  the  first  week  in  September,  and  twenty-five 
hundred  beeves  were  agreed  upon,  with  a  liberal 
leeway  above  and  below  that  number  in  case  of 
accident  en  route.  Accordingly,  on  our  return  to 
Loving's  ranch  active  preparations  were  begun 
for  the  next  drive.  Extra  horses  were  purchased, 
several  new  guns  of  the  most  modern  make  were 
secured,  and  the  gathering  of  cattle  in  Loving's 
brand  began  at  once,  continuing  for  six  weeks. 
We  combed  the  hills  and  valleys  along  the  main 
Brazos,  and  then  started  west  up  the  Clear  Fork, 
carrying  the  beeves  with  us  while  gathering.  The 
range  was  in  prime  condition,  the  cattle  were  fat 
and  indolent,  and  with  the  exception  of  Indian 
rumors  there  was  not  a  cloud  in  the  sky. 

Our  last  camp  was  made  a  few  miles  above  Fort 
Griffin.  Military  protection  was  not  expected,  yet 
our  proximity  to  that  post  was  considered  a  se 
curity  from  Indian  interference,  as  at  times  not 


56  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

over  half  the  outfit  were  with  the  herd.  We  had 
nearly  completed  our  numbers  when,  one  morning 
early  in  July,  the  redskins  struck  our  camp  with 
the  violence  of  a  cyclone.  The  attack  occurred,  as 
usual,  about  half  an  hour  before  dawn,  and,  to  add 
to  the  difficulty  of  the  situation,  the  cattle  stam 
peded  with  the  first  shot  fired.  I  was  on  last  guard 
at  the  time,  and  conscious  that  it  was  an  Indian 
attack  I  unslung  a  new  Sharp's  rifle  and  tore  away 
in  the  lead  of  the  herd.  With  the  rumbling  of  over 
two  thousand  running  cattle  in  my  ears,  hearing 
was  out  of  the  question,  while  my  sense  of  sight 
was  rendered  useless  by  the  darkness  of  the  morn 
ing  hour.  Yet  I  had  some  very  distinct  visions ; 
not  from  the  herd  of  frenzied  beeves,  thundering 
at  my  heels,  but  every  shade  and  shadow  in  the 
darkness  looked  like  a  pursuing  Comanche.  Once  I 
leveled  my  rifle  at  a  shadow,  but  hesitated,  when 
a  flash  from  a  six-shooter  revealed  the  object  to  be 
one  of  our  own  men.  I  knew  there  were  four  of  us 
with  the  herd  when  it  stampeded,  but  if  the  rest 
were  as  badly  bewildered  as  I  was,  it  was  danger 
ous  even  to  approach  them.  But  I  had  a  king's 
horse  under  me  and  trusted  my  life  to  him,  and  he 
led  the  run  until  breaking  dawn  revealed  our  iden 
tity  to  each  other. 

The  presence  of  two  other  men  with  the  running 
herd  was  then  discovered.  We  were  fully  five  miles 
from  camp,  and  giving  our  attention  to  the  running 


A   FATAL  TRIP  57 

cattle  we  soon  turned  the  lead.  The  main  body  of 
the  herd  was  strung  back  for  a  mile,  but  we  fell  on 
the  leaders  right  and  left,  and  soon  had  them  headed 
back  for  camp.  In  the  mean  time,  and  with  the 
breaking  of  day,  our  trail  had  been  taken  up  by 
both  drovers  and  half  a  dozen  men,  who  overtook 
us  shortly  after  sun-up.  A  count  was  made  and  we 
had  every  hoof.  A  determined  fight  had  occurred 
over  the  r emu  da  and  commissary,  and  three  of  the 
Indians'  ponies  had  been  killed,  while  some  thirty 
arrows  had  found  lodgment  in  our  wagon.  There 
were  no  casualties  in  the  cow  outfit,  and  if  any  oc 
curred  among  the  redskins,  the  wounded  or  killed 
were  carried  away  by  their  comrades  before  day 
break.  All  agreed  that  there  were  fully  one  hundred 
warriors  in  the  attacking  party,  and  as  we  slowly 
drifted  the  cattle  back  to  camp  doubt  was  ex 
pressed  by  the  drovers  whether  it  was  advisable  to 
drive  the  herd  to  its  destination  in  midsummer  with 
the  Comanches  out  on  their  old  hunting  grounds. 

A  report  of  the  attack  was  sent  into  Griffin  that 
morning,  and  a  company  of  cavalry  took  up  the 
Indian  trail,  followed  it  until  evening,  and  returned 
to  the  post  during  the  night.  Approaching  a  gov 
ernment  station  was  generally  looked  upon  as  an 
audacious  act  of  the  redskins,  but  the  contempt  of 
the  Comanche  and  his  ally  for  citizen  and  soldier 
alike  was  well  known  on  the  Texas  frontier  and  ex 
cited  little  comment.  Several  years  later,  in  broad 


58  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

daylight,  they  raided  the  town  of  Weatherford, 
untied  every  horse  from  the  hitching  racks,  and 
defiantly  rode  away  with  their  spoil.  But  the  pre 
vailing  spirits  in  our  camp  were  not  the  kind  to 
yield  to  an  inferior  race,  and,  true  to  their  obliga 
tion  to  the  contractors,  they  pushed  forward  prepa 
rations  to  start  the  herd.  Within  a  week  our  num 
bers  were  completed,  two  extra  men  were  secured, 
and  on  the  morning  of  July  14,  1867,  we  trailed 
out  up  the  Clear  Fork  with  a  few  over  twenty-six 
hundred  big  beeves.  It  was  the  same  old  route  to 
the  southwest,  there  was  a  decided  lack  of  enthusi 
asm  over  the  start,  yet  never  a  word  of  discourage 
ment  escaped  the  lips  of  men  or  employers.  I  have 
never  been  a  superstitious  man,  have  never  had  a 
premonition  of  impending  danger,  always  rather 
felt  an  enthusiasm  in  my  undertakings,  yet  that 
morning  when  the  flag  over  Fort  Griffin  faded 
from  our  view,  I  believe  there  was  not  a  man  in 
the  outfit  but  realized  that  our  journey  would  be 
disputed  by  Indians. 

Nor  had  we  long  to  wait.  Near  the  juncture  of 
Elm  Creek  with  the  main  Clear  Fork  we  were  again 
attacked  at  the  usual  hour  in  the  morning.  The 
camp  was  the  best  available,  and  yet  not  a  good  one 
for  defense,  as  the  ground  was  broken  by  shallow 
draws  and  dry  washes.  There  were  about  one  hun 
dred  yards  of  clear  space  on  three  sides  of  the  camp, 
while  on  the  exposed  side,  and  thirty  yards  distant, 


A   FATAL   TRIP  59 

was  a  slight  depression  of  several  feet.  Fortunately 
we  had  a  moment's  warning,  by  several  horses 
snorting  and  pawing  the  ground,  which  caused 
Goodnight  to  quietly  awake  the  men  sleeping  near 
him,  who  in  turn  were  arousing  the  others,  when  a 
flight  of  arrows  buried  themselves  in  the  ground 
around  us  and  the  war-whoop  of  the  Comanche 
sounded.  Ever  cautious,  we  had  studied  the  situ 
ation  on  encamping,  and  had  tied  our  horses,  cav 
alry  fashion,  to  a  heavy  rope  stretched  from  the 
protected  side  of  the  wagon  to  a  high  stake  driven 
for  the  purpose.  With  the  attack  the  majority  of 
the  men  flung  themselves  into  their  saddles  and 
started  to  the  rescue  of  the  remuda,  while  three 
others  and  myself,  detailed  in  anticipation,  ran  for 
the  ravine  and  dropped  into  it  about  forty  yards 
above  the  wagon.  We  could  easily  hear  the  exul 
tations  of  the  redskins  just  below  us  in  the  shallow 
gorge,  and  an  enfilade  fire  was  poured  into  them  at 
short  range.  Two  guns  were  cutting  the  grass  from 
underneath  the  wagon,  and,  knowing  the  Indians 
had  crept  up  the  depression  on  foot,  we  began  a 
rapid  fire  from  our  carbines  and  six-shooters,  which 
created  the  impression  of  a  dozen  rifles  on  their 
flank,  and  they  took  to  their  heels  in  a  headlong 
rout. 

Once  the  firing  ceased,  we  hailed  our  men  under 
the  wagon  and  returned  to  it.  Three  men  were 
with  the  commissary,  one  of  whom  was  a  mere 


60  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

boy,  who  was  wounded  in  the  head  from  an  arrow 
during  the  first  moment  of  the  attack,  and  was  then 
raving  piteously  from  his  sufferings.  The  darky 
cook,  who  was  one  of  the  defenders  of  the  wagon, 
was  consoling  the  boy,  so  with  a  parting  word  of 
encouragement  we  swung  into  our  saddles  and  rode 
in  the  direction  of  dim  firing  up  the  creek.  The 
cattle  were  out  of  hearing,  but  the  random  shooting 
directed  our  course,  and  halting  several  times,  we 
were  finally  piloted  to  the  scene  of  activity.  Our 
hail  was  met  by  a  shout  of  welcome,  and  the  next 
moment  we  dashed  in  among  our  own  and  reported 
the  repulse  of  the  Indians  from  the  wagon.  The  re- 
muda  was  dashing  about,  hither  and  yon,  a  mob  of 
howling  savages  were  circling  about,  barely  within 
gunshot,  while  our  men  rode  cautiously,  checking 
and  turning  the  frenzied  saddle  horses,  and  never 
missing  a  chance  of  judiciously  throwing  a  little 
lead.  There  was  no  sign  of  daybreak,  and,  fearful 
for  the  safety  of  our  commissary,  we  threw  a  cordon 
around  the  remuda  and  started  for  camp.  Although 
there  must  have  been  over  one  hundred  Indians  in 
the  general  attack,  we  were  still  masters  of  the 
situation,  though  they  followed  us  until  the  wagon 
was  reached  and  the  horses  secured  in  a  rope  cor 
ral.  A  number  of  us  again  sought  the  protection 
of  the  ravine,  and  scattering  above  and  below,  we 
got  in  some  telling  shots  at  short  range,  when  the 
redskins  gave  up  the  struggle  and  decamped.  As 


A  FATAL   TRIP  61 

they  bore  off  westward  on  the  main  Clear  Fork  their 
hilarious  shoutings  could  be  distinctly  heard  for 
miles  on  the  stillness  of  the  morning  air. 

An  inventory  of  the  camp  was  taken  at  dawn. 
The  wounded  lad  received  the  first  attention.  The 
arrowhead  had  buried  itself  below  and  behind  the 
ear,  but  nippers  were  applied  and  the  steel  point 
was  extracted.  The  cook  washed  the  wound  thor 
oughly  and  applied  a  poultice  of  meal,  which  afforded 
almost  instant  relief.  While  horses  were  being  sad 
dled  to  follow  the  cattle,  I  cast  my  eye  over  the 
camp  and  counted  over  two  hundred  arrows  within 
a  radius  of  fifty  yards.  Two  had  found  lodgment 
in  the  bear-skin  on  which  I  slept.  Dozens  were  im 
bedded  in  the  running-gear  and  box  of  the  wagon, 
while  the  stationary  flashes  from  the  muzzle  of  the 
cook's  Creedmoor  had  concentrated  an  unusual 
number  of  arrows  in  and  around  his  citadel.  The 
darky  had  exercised  caution  and  corded  the  six  ox- 
yokes  against  the  front  wheel  of  the  wagon  in  such 
a  manner  as  to  form  a  barrier,  using  the  spaces 
between  the  spokes  as  port-holes.  As  he  never 
varied  his  position  under  the  wagon,  the  Indians 
had  aimed  at  his  flash,  and  during  the  rather  brief 
fight  twenty  arrows  had  buried  themselves  in  that 
barricade  of  ox-yokes. 

The  trail  of  the  beeves  was  taken  at  dawn.  This 
made  the  fifth  stampede  of  the  herd  since  we 
started,  a  very  unfortunate  thing,  for  stampeding 


62  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

easily  becomes  a  mania  with  range  cattle.  The 
steers  had  left  the  bed-ground  in  an  easterly  direc 
tion,  but  finding  that  they  were  not  pursued,  the 
men  had  gradually  turned  them  to  the  right,  arid 
at  daybreak  the  herd  was  near  Elm  Creek,  where 
it  was  checked.  We  rode  the  circle  in  a  free  gallop, 
the  prairie  being  cut  into  dust  and  the  trail  as  easy 
to  follow  as  a  highway.  As  the  herd  happened  to 
land  on  our  course,  after  the  usual  count  the  com 
missary  was  sent  for,  and  it  and  the  remuda  were 
brought  up.  With  the  exception  of  wearing  hob 
bles,  the  oxen  were  always  given  their  freedom  at 
night.  This  morning  one  of  them  was  found  in 
a  dying  condition  from  an  arrow  in  his  stomach. 
A  humane  shot  had  relieved  the  poor  beast,  and 
his  mate  trailed  up  to  the  herd,  tied  behind  the 
wagon  with  a  rope.  There  were  several  odd  oxen 
among  the  cattle  and  the  vacancy  was  easily  filled. 
If  I  am  lacking  in  compassion  for  my  red  brother, 
the  lack  has  been  heightened  by  his  fiendish  atro 
cities  to  dumb  animals.  I  have  been  witness  to  the 
ruin  of  several  wagon  trains  captured  by  Indians, 
have  seen  their  ashes  and  irons,  and  even  charred 
human  remains,  and  was  scarce  moved  to  pity  be 
cause  of  the  completeness  of  the  hellish  work.  Death 
is  merciful  and  humane  when  compared  to  the  ham 
stringing  of  oxen,  gouging  out  their  eyes,  severing 
their  ears,  cutting  deep  slashes  from  shoulder  to 
hip,  and  leaving  the  innocent  victim  to  a  lingering 


A   FATAL  TRIP  63 

death.  And  when  dumb  animals  are  thus  mutilated 
in  every  conceivable  form  of  torment,  as  if  for  the 
amusement  of  the  imps  of  the  evil  one,  my  com 
passion  for  poor  Lo  ceases. 

It  was  impossible  to  send  the  wounded  boy  back 
to  the  settlements,  so  a  comfortable  bunk  was  made 
for  him  in  the  wagon.  Late  in  the  evening  we 
resumed  our  journey,  expecting  to  drive  all  night, 
as  it  was  good  starlight.  Fair  progress  was  made, 
but  towards  morning  a  rainstorm  struck  us,  and 
the  cattle  again  stampeded.  In  all  my  outdoor 
experience  I  never  saw  such  pitchy  darkness  as 
accompanied  that  storm  ;  although  galloping  across 
a  prairie  in  a  blustering  rainfall,  it  required  no 
strain  of  the  imagination  to  see  hills  and  mountains 
and  forests  on  every  hand.  Fourteen  men  were 
with  the  herd,  yet  it  was  impossible  to  work  in 
unison,  and  when  day  broke  we  had  less  than  half 
the  cattle.  The  lead  had  been  maintained,  but  in 
drifting  at  random  with  the  storm  several  contin 
gents  of  beeves  had  cut  off  from  the  main  body, 
supposedly  from  the  rear.  When  the  sun  rose, 
men  were  dispatched  in  pairs  and  trios,  the  trail  of 
the  missing  steers  was  picked  up,  and  by  ten  o'clock 
every  hoof  was  in  hand  or  accounted  for.  I  came 
in  with  the  last  contingent  and  found  the  camp  in 
an  uproar  over  the  supposed  desertion  of  one  of 
the  hands.  Yankee  Bill,  a  sixteen-year-old  boy,  and 
another  man  were  left  in  charge  of  the  herd  when 


64  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

the  rest  of  us  struck  out  to  hunt  the  missing  cattle. 
An  hour  after  sunrise  the  boy  was  seen  to  ride  de 
liberately  away  from  his  charge,  without  cause  or 
excuse,  and  had  not  returned.  Desertion  was  the 
general  supposition.  Had  he  not  been  mounted  on 
one  of  the  firm's  horses  the  offense  might  have 
been  overlooked.  But  the  delivery  of  the  herd  de 
pended  on  the  saddle  stock,  and  two  men  were  sent 
on  his  trail.  The  rain  had  freshened  the  ground, 
and  after  trailing  the  horse  for  fifteen  miles  the 
boy  was  overtaken  while  following  cattle  tracks 
towards  the  herd.  He  had  simply  fallen  asleep  in 
the  saddle,  and  the  horse  had  wandered  away. 
Yankee  Bill  had  made  the  trip  to  Sumner  with  us 
the  fall  before,  and  stood  well  with  his  employers, 
so  the  incident  was  forgiven  and  forgotten. 

From  Elm  Creek  to  the  beginning  of  the  dry 
drive  was  one  continual  struggle  with  stampeding 
cattle  or  warding  off  Indians.  In  spite  of  careful 
handling,  the  herd  became  spoiled,  and  would  run 
from  the  howl  of  a  wolf  or  the  snort  of  a  horse. 
The  dark  hour  before  dawn  was  usually  the  crucial 
period,  and  until  the  arid  belt  was  reached  all 
hands  were  aroused  at  two  o'clock  in  the  morning. 
The  start  was  timed  so  as  to  reach  the  dry  drive 
during  the  full  of  the  moon,  and  although  it  was  a 
test  of  endurance  for  man  and  beast,  there  was 
relief  in  the  desert  waste  —  from  the  lurking  sav 
age  —  which  recompensed  for  its  severity.  Three 


A   FATAL  TRIP  65 

sleepless  nights  were  borne  without  a  murmur,  and 
on  our  reaching  Horsehead  Crossing  and  watering 
the  cattle  they  were  turned  back  on  the  mesa  and 
freed  for  the  time  being.  The  presence  of  Indian 
sign  around  the  ford  was  the  reason  for  turning 
loose,  but  at  the  round-up  the  next  morning  the 
experiment  proved  a  costly  one,  as  three  hundred 
and  sixty-three  beeves  were  missing.  The  cattle 
were  nervous  and  feverish  through  suffering  from 
thirst,  and  had  they  been  bedded  closely,  stamped 
ing  would  have  resulted,  the  foreman  choosing  the 
least  of  two  alternatives  in  scattering  the  herd. 
That  night  we  slept  the  sleep  of  exhausted  men, 
and  the  next  morning  even  awaited  the  sun  on  the 
cattle  before  throwing  them  together,  giving  the  In 
dian  thieves  full  ten  hours  the  start.  The  stealing 
of  cattle  by  the  Comanches  was  something  unusual, 
and  there  was  just  reason  for  believing  that  the 
present  theft  was  instigated  by  renegade  Mexicans, 
allies  in  the  war  of  '36.  Three  distinct  trails  left 
the  range  around  the  Crossing,  all  heading  south, 
each  accompanied  by  fully  fifty  horsemen.  One 
contingent  crossed  the  Pecos  at  an  Indian  trail 
about  twenty-five  miles  below  Horsehead,  another 
still  below,  while  the  third  continued  on  down  the 
left  bank  of  the  river.  Yankee  Bill  and  "  Mocho  " 
Wilson,  a  one-armed  man,  followed  the  latter  trail, 
sighting  them  late  in  the  evening,  but  keeping  well 
in  the  open.  When  the  Comanches  had  satisfied 


66  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

themselves  that  but  two  men  were  following  them, 
small  bands  of  warriors  dropped  out  under  cover 
of  the  broken  country  and  attempted  to  gain  the 
rear  of  our  men.  Wilson  was  an  old  plainsman, 
and  once  he  saw  the  hopelessness  of  recovering 
the  cattle,  he  and  Yankee  Bill  began  a  cautious 
retreat.  During  the  night  and  when  opposite  the 
ford  where  the  first  contingent  of  beeves  crossed, 
they  were  waylaid,  while  returning,  by  the  wily  red 
skins.  The  nickering  of  a  pony  warned  them  of 
the  presence  of  the  enemy,  and  circling  wide,  they 
avoided  an  ambush,  though  pursued  by  the  stealthy 
Comanches.  Wilson  was  mounted  on  a  good  horse, 
while  Yankee  Bill  rode  a  mule,  and  so  closely  were 
they  pursued,  that  on  reaching  the  first  broken 
ground  Bill  turned  into  a  coulee,  while  Mocho  bore 
off  on  an  angle,  firing  his  six-shooter  to  attract  the 
enemy  after  him.  Yankee  Bill  told  us  afterward 
how  he  held  the  muzzle  of  his  mule  for  an  hour  on 
dismounting,  to  keep  the  rascal  from  bawling  after 
the  departing  horse.  Wilson  reached  camp  after 
midnight  and  reported  the  hopelessness  of  the  sit 
uation;  but  morning  came,  and  with  it  no  Yankee 
Bill  in  camp.  Half  a  dozen  of  us  started  in  search 
of  him,  under  the  leadership  of  the  one-armed 
plainsman,  and  an  hour  afterward  Bill  was  met 
riding  leisurely  up  the  river.  When  rebuked  by 
his  comrade  for  not  coming  in  under  cover  of  dark 
ness,  he  retorted,  "  Hell,  man,  I  was  n't  going  to 


A   FATAL  TRIP  67 

run  my  mule  to  death  just  because  there  were  a 
few  Comanches  in  the  country !  " 

In  trailing  the  missing  cattle  the  day  previous, 
I  had  accompanied  Mr.  Loving  to  the  second  In 
dian  crossing.  The  country  opposite  the  ford  was 
broken  and  brushy,  the  trail  was  five  or  six  hours 
old,  and,  fearing  an  ambush,  the  drover  refused  to 
follow  them  farther.  With  the  return  of  Yankee 
Bill  safe  and  sound  to  camp,  all  hope  of  recover 
ing  the  beeves  was  abandoned,  and  we  crossed  the 
Pecos  and  turned  up  that  river.  An  effort  was 
now  made  to  quiet  the  herd  and  bring  it  back  to 
a  normal  condition,  in  order  to  fit  it  for  delivery. 
With  Indian  raids,  frenzy  in  stampeding,  and  an 
unavoidable  dry  drive,  the  cattle  had  gaunted  like 
rails.  But  with  an  abundance  of  water  and  by 
merely  grazing  the  remainder  of  the  distance,  it 
was  believed  that  the  beeves  would  recover  their 
old  form  and  be  ready  for  inspection  at  the  end  of 
the  month  of  August.  Indian  sign  was  still  plenti 
ful,  but  in  smaller  bands,  and  with  an  unceasing 
vigilance  we  wormed  our  way  up  the  Pecos  valley. 

When  within  a  day's  ride  of  the  post,  Mr.  Lov 
ing  took  Wilson  with  him  and  started  in  to  Fort 
Sumner.  The  heat  of  August  on  the  herd  had  made 
recovery  slow,  but  if  a  two  weeks'  postponement 
could  be  agreed  on,  it  was  believed  the  beeves 
would  qualify.  The  circumstances  were  unavoida 
ble  ;  the  government  had  been  lenient  before ;  so, 


68  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

hopeful  of  accomplishing  his  mission,  the  senior 
member  of  the  firm  set  out  on  his  way.  The  two 
men  left  camp  at  daybreak,  cautioned  by  Good 
night  to  cross  the  river  by  a  well-known  trail, 
keeping  in  the  open,  even  though  it  was  farther, 
as  a  matter  of  safety.  They  were  well  mounted  for 
the  trip,  and  no  further  concern  was  given  to  their 
welfare  until  the  second  morning,  when  Loving's 
horse  came  into  camp,  whinnying  for  his  mates. 
There  were  blood-stains  on  the  saddle,  and  the 
story  of  a  man  who  was  cautious  for  others  and 
careless  of  himself  was  easily  understood.  Conjec 
ture  was  rife.  The  presence  of  the  horse  admitted 
of  several  interpretations.  An  Indian  ambush  was 
the  most  probable,  and  a  number  of  men  were 
detailed  to  ferret  out  the  mystery.  We  were  then 
seventy  miles  below  Sumner,  and  with  orders  to 
return  to  the  herd  at  night  six  of  us  immediately 
started.  The  searching  party  was  divided  into 
squads,  one  on  either  side  of  the  Pecos  River,  but 
no  results  were  obtained  from  the  first  day's  hunt. 
The  herd  had  moved  up  fifteen  miles  during  the 
day,  and  the  next  morning  the  search  was  resumed, 
the  work  beginning  where  it  had  ceased  the  even 
ing  before.  Late  that  afternoon  and  from  the  east 
bank,  as  Goodnight  and  I  were  scanning  the  oppo 
site  side  of  the  river,  a  lone  man,  almost  naked, 
emerged  from  a  cave  across  the  channel  and  above 
us.  Had  it  not  been  for  his  missing  arm  it  is 


A   FATAL  TRIP  69 

doubtful  if  we  should  have  recognized  him,  for  he 
seemed  demented.  We  rode  opposite  and  hailed, 
when  he  skulked  back  into  his  refuge ;  but  we  were 
satisfied  that  it  was  Wilson.  The  other  searchers 
were  signaled  to,  and  finding  an  entrance  into  the 
river,  we  swam  it  and  rode  up  to  the  cave.  A 
shout  of  welcome  greeted  us,  and  the  next  instant 
Wilson  staggered  out  of  the  cavern,  his  eyes  filled 
with  tears. 

He  was  in  a  horrible  physical  condition,  and 
bewildered.  We  were  an  hour  getting  his  story. 
They  had  been  ambushed  by  Indians  and  ran  for 
the  brakes  of  the  river,  but  were  compelled  to 
abandon  their  horses,  one  of  which  was  captured, 
the  other  escaping.  Loving  was  wounded  twice, 
in  the  wrist  and  the  side,  but  from  the  cover 
gained  they  had  stood  off  the  savages  until  dark 
ness  fell.  During  the  night  Loving,  unable  to 
walk,  believed  that  he  was  going  to  die,  and  begged 
Wilson  to  make  his  escape,  and  if  possible  return 
to  the  herd.  After  making  his  employer  as  com 
fortable  as  possible,  Wilson  buried  his  own  rifle, 
pistols,  and  knife,  and  started  on  his  return  to 
the  herd.  Being  one-armed,  he  had  discarded  his 
boots  and  nearly  all  his  clothing  to  assist  him  in 
swimming  the  river,  which  he  had  done  any  num 
ber  of  times,  traveling  by  night  and  hiding  during 
the  day.  When  found  in  the  cave,  his  feet  were 
badly  swollen,  compelling  him  to  travel  in  the 


70  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

river-bed  to  protect  them  from  sandburs  and  thorns. 
He  was  taken  up  behind  one  of  the  boys  on  a 
horse,  and  we  returned  to  camp. 

Wilson  firmly  believed  that  Loving  was  dead, 
and  described  the  scene  of  the  fight  so  clearly  that 
any  one  familiar  with  the  river  would  have  no  dif 
ficulty  in  locating  the  exact  spot.  But  the  next 
morning  as  we  were  nearing  the  place  we  met  an 
ambulance  in  the  road,  the  driver  of  which  reported 
that  Loving  had  been  brought  into  Sumner  by  a 
freight  outfit.  On  receipt  of  this  information  Good 
night  hurried  on  to  the  post,  while  the  rest  of  us 
looked  over  the  scene,  recovered  the  buried  guns  of 
Wilson,  and  returned  to  the  herd.  Subsequently 
we  learned  that  the  next  morning  after  Wilson  left 
Loving  had  crawled  to  the  river  for  a  drink,  and, 
looking  upstream,  saw  some  one  a  mile  or  more 
distant  watering  a  team.  By  firing  his  pistol  he  at 
tracted  attention  to  himself  and  so  was  rescued,  the 
Indians  having  decamped  during  the  night.  To  his 
partner,  Mr.  Loving  corroborated  Wilson's  story, 
and  rejoiced  to  know  that  his  comrade  had  also 
escaped.  Everything  that  medical  science  could  do 
was  done  by  the  post  surgeons  for  the  veteran  cow 
man,  but  after  lingering  twenty-one  days  he  died. 
Wilson  and  the  wounded  boy  both  recovered,  the 
cattle  were  delivered  in  two  installments,  and  early 
in  October  we  started  homeward,  carrying  the 
embalmed  remains  of  the  pioneer  drover  in  a  light 


A  FATAL  TRIP  71 

conveyance.  The  trip  was  uneventful,  the  traveling 
was  done  principally  by  night,  and  on  the  arrival 
at  Loving' s  frontier  home,  six  hundred  miles  from 
Fort  Sumner,  his  remains  were  laid  at  rest  with 
Masonic  honors. 

Over  thirty  years  afterward  a  claim  was  made 
against  the  government  for  the  cattle  lost  at 
Horsehead  Crossing.  Wilson  and  I  were  witnesses 
before  the  commissioner  sent  to  take  evidence  in  the 
case.  The  hearing  was  held  at  a  federal  court,  and 
after  it  was  over,  Wilson,  while  drinking,  accused 
me  of  suspecting  him  of  deserting  his  employer, 
—  a  suspicion  I  had,  in  fact,  entertained  at  the 
time  we  discovered  him  at  the  cave.  I  had  never 
breathed  it  to  a  living  man,  yet  it  was  the  truth, 
slumbering  for  a  generation  before  finding  expres 
sion. 


CHAPTER  V 

SUMMER  OF  '68 

THE  death  of  Mr.  Loving  ended  my  employment 
in  driving  cattle  to  Fort  Sumner.  The  junior 
member  of  the  firm  was  anxious  to  continue  the 
trade  then  established,  but  the  absence  of  any  pro 
tection  against  the  Indians,  either  state  or  federal, 
was  hopeless.  Texas  was  suffering  from  the  inter 
nal  troubles  of  Reconstruction,  the  paternal  govern 
ment  had  small  concern  for  the  welfare  of  a  State 
recently  in  arms  against  the  Union,  and  there  was 
little  or  no  hope  for  protection  of  life  or  property 
under  existing  conditions.  The  outfit  was  accord 
ingly  paid  off,  and  I  returned  with  George  Edwards 
to  his  father's  ranch.  The  past  eighteen  months 
had  given  me  a  strenuous  schooling,  but  I  had 
emerged  on  my  feet,  feeling  that  once  more  I  was 
entitled  to  a  place  among  men.  The  risk  that  had 
been  incurred  by  the  drovers  acted  like  a  phy 
sical  stimulant,  the  outdoor  life  had  hardened  me 
like  iron,  and  I  came  out  of  the  crucible  bright 
with  the  hope  of  youth  and  buoyant  with  health 
and  strength. 

Meanwhile  there  had  sprung  up  a  small  trade 


SUMMER  OF  '68  73 

in  cattle   with   the    North.     Baxter  Springs  and 
Abilene,  both    in   Kansas,  were  beginning  to  be 
mentioned  as  possible  markets,  light  drives  having 
gone  to  those  points  during  the  present  and  previous 
summers.    The  elder  Edwards  had  been  investigat 
ing  the  new  outlet,  and  on  the  return  of  George  and 
myself  was  rather  enthusiastic  over  the  prospects 
of  a  market.   No  Indian  trouble  had  been  experi 
enced  on  the  northern  route,  and  although  demand 
generally  was  unsatisfactory,  the  faith  of  drovers  in 
the  future  was  unshaken.    A  railroad  had  recently 
reached  Abilene,  stockyards  had  been  built  for  the 
accommodation  of  shippers  during  the  summer  of 
1867,  while  a  firm  of  shrewd,  far-seeing  Yankees 
made   great  pretensions  of  having    established    a 
market  and  meeting-point  for  buyers  and  sellers 
of  Texas  cattle.    The  promoters  of  the  scheme  had 
a  contract  with  the  railroad,  whereby  they  were  to 
receive  a  bonus  on  all  cattle    shipped  from  that 
point,  and  the  Texas  drovers  were  offered  every  in 
ducement  to  make  Abilene  their  destination  in  the 
future.    The  unfriendliness  of  other  States  against 
Texas  cattle,  caused  by  the  ravages  of  fever  imparted 
by  southern  to  domestic  animals,  had  resulted  in 
quarantine  being  enforced  against  all  stock  from 
the  South.    Matters  were  in  an  unsettled  condition, 
and  less  than  one  per  cent  of  the  State's  holdings  of 
cattle  had  found  an  outside  market  during  the  year 
1867,  though  ranchmen  in  general  were  hopeful. 


74  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

I  spent  the  remainder  of  the  month  of  October 
at  the  Edwards  ranch.  We  had  returned  in  time 
for  the  fall  branding,  and  George  and  I  both  made 
acceptable  hands  at  the  work.  I  had  mastered  the 
art  of  handling  a  rope,  and  while  we  usually  cor 
ralled  everything,  scarcely  a  day  passed  but  occa 
sion  occurred  to  rope  wild  cattle  out  of  the  brush. 
Anxiety  to  learn  soon  made  me  an  expert,  and 
before  the  month  ended  I  had  caught  and  branded 
for  myself  over  one  hundred  mavericks.  Cattle 
were  so  worthless  that  no  one  went  to  the  trouble 
to  brand  completely ;  the  crumbs  were  acceptable 
to  me,  and,  since  no  one  else  cared  for  them  and  I 
did,  the  flotsam  and  jetsam  of  the  range  fell  to  my 
brand.  Had  I  been  ambitious,  double  that  number 
could  have  been  easily  secured,  but  we  never  went 
off  the  home  range  in  gathering  calves  to  brand. 
All  the  hands  on  the  Edwards  ranch,  darkies  and 
Mexicans,  were  constantly  throwing  into  the  corrals 
and  pointing  out  unclaimed  cattle,  while  I  threw 
and  indelibly  ran  the  figures  "  44  "  on  their  sides. 
I  was  partial  to  heifers,  and  when  one  was  sighted 
there  was  no  brush  so  thick  or  animal  so  wild  that 
it  was  not  "  fish  "  to  my  rope.  In  many  instances 
a  cow  of  unknown  brand  was  still  followed  by  her 
two-year-old,  yearling,  and  present  calf.  Under  the 
customs  of  the  country,  any  unbranded  animal,  one 
year  old  or  over,  was  a  maverick,  and  the  property 
of  any  one  who  cared  to  brand  the  unclaimed  stray. 


SUMMER  OF  '68  75 

Thousands  of  cattle  thus  lived  to  old  age,  multi 
plied  and  increased,  died  and  became  food  for 
worms,  unowned. 

The  branding  over,  I  soon  grew  impatient  to  be 
doing  something.  There  would  be  no  movement  in 
cattle  before  the  following  spring,  and  a  winter  of 
idleness  was  not  to  my  liking.  Buffalo  hunting  had 
lost  its  charm  with  me,  the  contentious  savages 
were  jealous  of  any  intrusion  on  their  old  hunting 
grounds,  and,  having  met  them  on  numerous  occa 
sions  during  the  past  eighteen  months,  I  had  no 
further  desire  to  cultivate  their  acquaintance.  I 
still  owned  my  horse,  now  acclimated,  and  had 
money  in  my  purse,  and  one  morning  I  announced 
my  intention  of  visiting  my  other  comrades  in 
Texas.  Protests  were  made  against  my  going,  and 
as  an  incentive  to  have  me  remain,  the  elder  Ed 
wards  offered  to  outfit  George  and  me  the  following 
spring  with  a  herd  of  cattle  and  start  us  to  Kansas. 
I  was  anxious  for  employment,  but  assuring  my  host 
that  he  could  count  on  my  services,  I  still  pleaded 
my  anxiety  to  see  other  portions  of  the  State  and 
renew  old  acquaintances.  The  herd  could  not  pos 
sibly  start  before  the  middle  of  April,  so  telling 
my  friends  that  I  would  be  on  hand  to  help  gather 
the  cattle,  I  saddled  my  horse  and  took  leave  of 
the  hospitable  ranch. 

After  a  week  of  hard  riding  I  reached  the  home 
of  a  former  comrade  on  the  Colorado  River  below 


76  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

Austin.  A  hearty  welcome  awaited  me,  but  the 
apparent  poverty  of  the  family  made  my  visit 
rather  a  brief  one.  Continuing  eastward,  my  next 
stop  was  in  Washington  County,  one  of  the  oldest 
settled  communities  in  the  State.  The  blight  of 
Eeconstruction  seemed  to  have  settled  over  the 
people  like  a  pall,  the  frontier  having  escaped  it. 
But  having  reached  my  destination,  I  was  deter 
mined  to  make  the  best  of  it.  At  the  house  of  my 
next  comrade  I  felt  a  little  more  at  home,  he  hav 
ing  married  since  his  return  and  being  naturally 
of  a  cheerful  disposition.  For  a  year  previous  to 
the  surrender  he  and  I  had  wrangled  beef  for  the 
Confederacy  and  had  been  stanch  cronies.  We 
had  also  been  in  considerable  mischief  together ; 
and  his  wife  seemed  to  know  me  by  reputation  as 
well  as  I  knew  her  husband.  Before  the  wire 
edge  wore  off  my  visit  I  was  as  free  with  the 
couple  as  though  they  had  been  my  own  brother 
and  sister.  The  fact  was  all  too  visible  that  they 
were  struggling  with  poverty,  though  lightened  by 
cheerfulness,  and  to  remain  long  a  guest  would 
have  been  an  imposition ;  accordingly  I  began  to 
skirmish  for  something  to  do  —  anything,  it  mat 
tered  not  what.  The  only  work  in  sight  was  with 
a  carpet-bag  dredging  company,  improving  the 
lower  Brazos  River,  under  a  contract  from  the 
Reconstruction  government  of  the  State.  My  old 
crony  pleaded  with  me  to  have  nothing  to  do  with 


SUMMER   OF  '68  77 

the  job,  offering  to  share  his  last  crust  with  me ; 
but  then  he  had  not  had  all  the  animosities  of  the 
war  roughed  out  of  him,  and  I  had.  I  would  work 
for  a  Federal  as  soon  as  any  one  else,  provided 
he  paid  me  the  promised  wage,  and,  giving  rein 
to  my  impulse,  I  made  application  at  the  dredging 
headquarters  and  was  put  in  charge  of  a  squad  of 
negroes. 

I  was  to  have  sixty  dollars  a  month  and  board. 
The  company  operated  a  commissary  store,  a  reg 
ular  "pluck-me  "  concern,  and  I  shortly  understood 
the  incentive  in  offering  me  such  good  wages.  All 
employees  were  encouraged  and  expected  to  draw 
their  pay  in  supplies,  which  were  sold  at  treble 
their  actual  value  from  the  commissary.  I  had 
been  raised  among  negroes,  knew  how  to  humor 
and  handle  them,  the  work  was  easy,  and  I  drifted 
along  with  all  my  faculties  alert.  Before  long  I 
saw  that  the  improvement  of  the  river  was  the 
least  of  the  company's  concern,  the  employment  of 
a  large  number  of  men  being  the  chief  motive,  so 
long  as  they  drew  their  wages  in  supplies.  True, 
we  scattered  a  few  lodgments  of  driftwood ;  with 
the  aid  of  a  flat-bottomed  scow  we  windlassed  up 
and  cut  out  a  number  of  old  snags,  felled  trees  into 
the  river  to  prevent  erosion  of  its  banks,  and  we 
built  a  large  number  of  wind-dams  to  straighten 
or  change  the  channel.  It  seemed  to  be  a  blanket 
contract,  —  a  reward  to  the  faithful, — and  per- 


78  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

mitted  of  any  number  of  extras  which  might  be 
charged  for  at  any  figures  the  contractors  saw  fit 
to  make.  At  the  end  of  the  first  month  I  naturally 
looked  for  my  wages.  Various  excuses  were  made, 
but  I  was  cordially  invited  to  draw  anything  needed 
from  the  commissary. 

A  second  month  passed,  during  which  time  the 
only  currency  current  was  in  the  form  of  land 
certificates.  The  Commonwealth  of  Texas,  on  her 
admission  into  the  Union,  retained  the  control  of 
her  lands,  over  half  the  entire  area  of  the  State 
being  unclaimed  at  the  close  of  the  civil  war. 
The  carpet-bag  government,  then  in  the  saddle, 
was  prodigal  to  its  favorites  in  bonuses  of  land 
to  any  and  all  kinds  of  public  improvement.  Cer 
tificates  were  issued  in  the  form  of  scrip  calling 
for  sections  of  the  public  domain  of  six  hundred 
and  forty  acres  each,  and  were  current  at  from 
three  to  five  cents  an  acre.  The  owner  of  one  or 
more  could  locate  on  any  of  the  unoccupied  lands 
of  the  present  State  by  merely  surveying  and  re 
cording  his  selection  at  the  county  seat.  The  scrip 
was  bandied  about,  no  one  caring  for  it,  and  on 
the  termination  of  my  second  month  I  was  offered 
four  sections  for  my  services  up  to  date,  provided 
I  would  remain  longer  in  the  company's  employ. 
I  knew  the  value  of  land  in  the  older  States,  in 
fact,  already  had  my  eye  on  some  splendid  valleys 
on  the  Clear  Fork,  and  accepted  the  offered  cer- 


SUMMER  OF  '68  79 

tificates.  The  idea  found  a  firm  lodgment  in  my 
mind,  and  I  traded  one  of  my  six-shooters  even  for 
a  section  of  scrip,  and  won  several  more  in  card 
games.  I  had  learned  to  play  poker  in  the  army, 
—  knew  the  rudiments  of  the  game  at  least,  —  and 
before  the  middle  of  March  I  was  the  possessor  of 
certificates  calling  for  thirty  sections  of  land.  As 
the  time  was  drawing  near  for  my  return  to  Palo 
Pinto  County,  I  severed  my  connection  with  the 
dredging  company  and  returned  to  the  home  of  my 
old  comrade.  I  had  left  my  horse  with  him,  and 
under  the  pretense  of  paying  for  feeding  the  ani 
mal  well  for  the  return  trip,  had  slipped  my  crony 
a  small  gold  piece  several  times  during  the  winter. 
He  ridiculed  me  over  my  land  scrip,  but  I  was 
satisfied,  and  after  spending  a  day  with  the  couple 
I  started  on  my  return. 

Evidences  of  spring  were  to  be  seen  on  every 
hand.  My  ride  northward  was  a  race  with  the  sea 
son,  but  I  outrode  the  coming  grass,  the  budding 
trees,  the  first  flowers,  and  the  mating  birds,  and 
reached  the  Edwards  ranch  on  the  last  day  of 
March.  Any  number  of  cattle  had  already  been 
tendered  in  making  up  the  herd,  over  half  the  sad 
dle  horses  necessary  were  in  hand  or  promised,  and 
they  were  only  awaiting  my  return.  I  had  no  idea 
what  the  requirements  of  the  Kansas  market  were, 
and  no  one  else  seemed  to  know,  but  it  was  finally 
decided  to  drive  a  mixed  herd  of  twenty-five  hun- 


80  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

dred  by  way  of  experiment.  The  promoters  of  the 
Abilene  market  had  flooded  Texas  with  advertising 
matter  during  the  winter,  urging  that  only  choice 
cattle  should  be  driven,  yet  the  information  was  of 
little  value  where  local  customs  classified  all  live 
stock.  A  beef  was  a  beef,  whether  he  weighed 
eight  or  twelve  hundred  pounds,  a  cow  was  a  cow 
when  over  three  years  old,  and  so  on  to  the  end 
of  the  chapter.  From  a  purely  selfish  motive  of 
wanting  strong  cattle  for  the  trip,  I  suggested  that 
nothing  under  three-year-olds  should  be  used  in 
making  up  the  herd,  a  preference  to  be  given  ma 
tured  beeves.  George  Edwards  also  favored  the 
idea,  and  as  our  experience  in  trailing  cattle  car 
ried  some  little  weight,  orders  were  given  to  gather 
nothing  that  had  not  age,  flesh,  and  strength  for 
the  journey. 

I  was  to  have  fifty  dollars  a  month  and  furnish 
my  own  mount.  Horses  were  cheap,  but  I  wanted 
good  ones,  and  after  skirmishing  about  I  secured 
four  to  my  liking  in  return  for  one  hundred  dollars 
in  gold.  I  still  had  some  money  left  from  my  wages 
in  driving  cattle  to  Fort  Sunnier,  and  I  began  look 
ing  about  for  oxen  in  which  to  invest  the  remainder. 
Having  little,  I  must  be  very  careful  and  make  my 
investment  in  something  staple ;  and  remembering 
the  fine  prices  current  in  Colorado  the  spring  before 
for  work  cattle,  I  offered  to  supply  the  oxen  for 
the  commissary.  My  proposal  was  accepted,  and  ac- 


SUMMER  OF  '68  81 

cordingly  I  began  making  inquiry  for  wagon  stock. 
Finally  I  heard  of  a  freight  outfit  in  the  adjoining 
county  east,  the  owner  of  which  had  died  the  winter 
before,  the  administrator  offering  his  effects  for 
sale.  I  lost  no  time  in  seeing  the  oxen  and  hunting 
up  their  custodian,  who  proved  to  be  a  frontier  sur 
veyor  at  the  county  seat.  There  were  two  teams  of 
six  yoke  each,  fine  cattle,  and  I  had  hopes  of  being 
able  to  buy  six  or  eight  oxen.  But  the  surveyor 
insisted  on  selling  both  teams,  offering  to  credit  me 
on  any  balance  if  I  could  give  him  security.  I  had 
never  mentioned  my  land  scrip  to  any  one,  and 
wishing  to  see  if  it  had  any  value,  I  produced  and 
tendered  the  certificates  to  the  surveyor.  He  looked 
them  over,  made  a  computation,  and  informed  me 
that  they  were  worth  in  his  county  about  five  cents 
an  acre,  or  nearly  one  thousand  dollars.  He  also 
offered  to  accept  them  as  security,  assuring  me  that 
he  could  use  some  of  them  in  locating  lands  for 
settlers.  But  it  was  not  my  idea  to  sell  the  land 
scrip,  and  a  trade  was  easily  effected  on  the  twenty- 
four  oxen,  yokes,  and  chains,  I  paying  what  money 
I  could  spare  and  leaving  the  certificates  for  secur 
ity  on  the  balance.  As  I  look  back  over  an  event 
ful  life,  I  remember  no  special  time  in  which  I  felt 
quite  as  rich  as  the  evening  that  I  drove  into  the 
Edwards  ranch  with  twelve  yoke  of  oxen  chained 
together  in  one  team.  The  darkies  and  Mexicans 
gathered  about,  even  the  family,  to  admire  the  big 


82  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

fellows,  and  I  remember  a  thrill  which  shivered 
through  me  as  Miss  Gertrude  passed  down  the 
column,  kindly  patting  each  near  ox  as  though  she 
felt  a  personal  interest  in  my  possessions. 

We  waited  for  good  grass  before  beginning  the 
gathering.  Half  a  dozen  round-ups  on  the  home 
range  would  be  all  that  was  necessary  in  completing 
the  numbers  allotted  to  the  Edwards  ranch.  Three 
other  cowmen  were  going  to  turn  in  a  thousand 
head  and  furnish  and  mount  a  man  each,  there  being 
no  occasion  to  road-brand,  as  every  one  knew  the 
ranch  brands  which  would  go  to  make  up  the  herd. 
An  outfit  of  twelve  men  was  considered  sufficient,  as 
it  was  an  open  prairie  country  and  through  civilized 
tribes  between  Texas  and  Kansas.  All  the  darkies 
and  Mexicans  from  the  home  ranch  who  could  be 
spared  were  to  be  taken  along,  making  it  necessary 
to  hire  only  three  outside  men.  The  drive  was 
looked  upon  as  an  experiment,  there  being  no  out 
lay  of  money,  even  the  meal  and  bacon  which  went 
into  the  commissary  being  supplied  from  the  Ed 
wards  household.  The  country  contributed  the 
horses  and  cattle,  and  if  the  project  paid  out,  well 
and  good ;  if  not  there  was  small  loss,  as  they  were 
worth  nothing  at  home.  The  20th  of  April  was 
set  for  starting.  Three  days'  work  on  the  home 
range  and  we  had  two  thousand  cattle  under  herd, 
consisting  of  dry  or  barren  cows  and  steers  three 
years  old  or  over,  fully  half  the  latter  being  heavy 


SUMMER  OF  '68  83 

beeves.  We  culled  back  and  trimmed  our  allotment 
down  to  sixteen  hundred,  and  when  the  outside 
contingents  were  thrown  in  we  had  a  few  over 
twenty-eight  hundred  cattle  in  the  herd.  A  Mexican 
was  placed  in  charge  of  the  remuda,  a  darky,  with 
three  yoke  of  oxen,  looked  after  the  commissary, 
and  with  ten  mounted  men  around  the  herd  we 
started. 

Five  and  six  horses  were  allotted  to  the  man,  each 
one  had  one  or  two  six-shooters,  while  half  a  dozen 
rifles  of  different  makes  were  carried  in  the  wagon. 
The  herd  moved  northward  by  easy  marches,  open 
country  being  followed  until  we  reached  Red  River, 
where  we  had  the  misfortune  to  lose  George  Ed 
wards  from  sickness.  He  was  the  foreman  from 
whom  all  took  orders.  While  crossing  into  the 
Chickasaw  Nation  it  was  necessary  to  swim  the  cat 
tle.  We  cut  them  into  small  bunches,  and  in  ford 
ing  and  refording  a  whole  afternoon  was  spent  in 
the  water.  Towards  evening  our  foreman  was  ren 
dered  useless  from  a  chill,  followed  by  fever  during 
the  night.  The  next  morning  he  was  worse,  and  as 
it  was  necessary  to  move  the  herd  out  to  open  coun 
try,  Edwards  took  an  old  negro  with  him  and  went 
back  to  a  ranch  on  the  Texas  side.  Several  days 
afterward  the  darky  overtook  us  with  the  word  that 
his  master  would  be  unable  to  acc'ompany  the  cattle, 
and  that  I  was  to  take  the  herd  through  to  Abilene. 
The  negro  remained  with  us,  and  at  the  first  oppor- 


84  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

tunity  I  picked  up  another  man.  Within  a  week 
we  encountered  a  country  trail,  bearing  slightly 
northwest,  over  which  herds  had  recently  passed. 
This  trace  led  us  into  another,  which  followed  up 
the  south  side  of  the  Washita  River,  and  two  weeks 
after  reaching  the  Nation  we  entered  what  after 
ward  became  famous  as  the  Chisholm  trail.  The 
Chickasaw  was  one  of  the  civilized  tribes ;  its  mem 
bers  had  intermarried  with  the  whites  until  their 
identity  as  Indians  was  almost  lost.  They  owned 
fine  homes  and  farms  in  the  Washita  valley,  were 
hospitable  to  strangers,  and  where  the  aboriginal 
blood  was  properly  diluted  the  women  were  strik 
ingly  beautiful.  In  this  same  valley,  fifteen  years 
afterward,  I  saw  a  herd  of  one  thousand  and  seven 
head  of  corn-fed  cattle.  The  grain  was  delivered  at 
feed-lots  at  ten  cents  a  bushel,  and  the  beeves  had 
then  been  on  full  feed  for  nine  months.  There  were 
no  railroads  in  the  country  and  the  only  outlet  for 
the  surplus  corn  was  to  feed  it  to  cattle  and  drive 
them  to  some  shipping-point  in  Kansas. 

Compared  with  the  route  to  Fort  Sumner,  the 
northern  one  was  a  paradise.  No  day  passed  but 
there  was  an  abundance  of  water,  while  the  grass 
simply  carpeted  the  country.  We  merely  soldiered 
along,  crossing  what  was  then  one  of  the  No-man's 
lands  and  the  Cherokee  Outlet,  never  sighting 
another  herd  until  after  entering  Kansas.  We 
amused  ourselves  like  urchins  out  for  a  holiday, 


SUMMER  OF  '68  85 

the  country  was  full  of  all  kinds  of  game,  and  our 
darky  cook  was  kept  busy  frying  venison  and 
roasting  turkeys.  A  calf  was  born  on  the  trail,  the 
mother  of  which  was  quite  gentle,  and  we  broke 
her  for  a  milk  cow,  while  "  Bull,"  the  youngster, 
became  a  great  pet.  A  cow-skin  was  slung  under 
the  wagon  for  carrying  wood  and  heavy  cooking 
utensils,  and  the  calf  was  given  a  berth  in  the 
hammock  until  he  was  able  to  follow.  But  when 
Bull  became  older  he  hung  around  the  wagon  like 
a  dog,  preferring  the  company  of  the  outfit  to  that 
of  his  own  mother.  He  soon  learned  to  eat  cold 
biscuit  and  corn-pone,  and  would  hang  around  at 
meal-time,  ready  for  the  scraps.  We  always  had 
to  notice  where  the  calf  lay  down  to  sleep,  as  he 
was  a  black  rascal,  and  the  men  were  liable  to 
stumble  over  him  while  changing  guards  during 
the  night.  He  never  could  be  prevailed  on  to  walk 
with  his  mother,  but  followed  the  wagon  or  rode 
in  his  hammock,  and  was  always  happy  as  a  lark 
when  the  recipient  of  the  outfit's  attentions.  We 
sometimes  secured  as  much  as  two  gallons  of  milk 
a  day  from  the  cow,  but  it  was  pitiful  to  watch  her 
futile  efforts  at  coaxing  her  offspring  away  from 
the  wagon. 

We  passed  to  the  west  of  the  town  of  Wichita 
and  reached  our  destination  early  in  June.  There 
1  found  several  letters  awaiting  me,  with  instruc 
tions  to  dispose  of  the  herd  or  to  report  what  was 


86  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

the  prospect  of  effecting  a  sale.  We  camped  about 
five  miles  from  Abilene,  and  before  I  could  post 
myself  on  cattle  values  half  a  dozen  buyers  had 
looked  the  herd  over.  Men  were  in  the  market 
anxious  for  beef  cattle  with  which  to  fill  army 
and  Indian  contracts,  feeders  from  Eastern  States, 
shippers  and  speculators  galore,  cowmen  looking 
for  she  stuff  with  which  to  start  new  ranches,  while 
scarcely  a  day  passed  but  inquiry  was  made  by  set 
tlers  for  oxen  with  which  to  break  prairie.  A  dozen 
herds  had  arrived  ahead  of ,  us,  the  market  had 
fairly  opened,  and,  once  I  got  the  drift  of  current 
prices,  I  was  as  busy  as  a  farmer  getting  ready  to 
cut  his  buckwheat.  Every  yoke  of  oxen  was  sold 
within  a  week,  one  ranchman  took  all  the  cows,  an 
army  contractor  took  one  thousand  of  the  largest 
beeves,  feeders  from  Iowa  took  the  younger  steers, 
and  within  six  weeks  after  arriving  I  did  not  have 
a  hoof  left.  In  the  mean  time  I  kept  an  account  of 
each  sale,  brands  and  numbers,  in  order  to  render 
a  statement  to  the  owners  of  the  cattle.  As  fast  as 
the  money  was  received  I  sent  it  home  by  drafts, 
except  the  proceeds  from  the  oxen,  which  was  a 
private  matter.  I  bought  and  sold  two  whole  re- 
mud  as  of  horses  on  speculation,  clearing  fifteen  of 
the  best  ones  and  three  hundred  dollars  on  the 
transactions. 

The  facilities  for  handling  cattle  at  Abilene  were 
not  completed  until  late  in  the  season  of  '67,  yet 


SUMMER  OF  '68  87 

twenty-five  thousand  cattle  found  a  market  there 
that  summer  and  fall.  The  drive  of  the  present 
year  would  triple  that  number,  and  every  one 
seemed  pleased  with  future  prospects.  The  town 
took  on  an  air  of  frontier  prosperity ;  saloons  and 
gambling  and  dance  halls  multiplied,  and  every 
legitimate  line  of  business  flourished  like  a  green 
bay  tree.  I  made  the  acquaintance  of  every  drover 
and  was  generally  looked  upon  as  an  extra  good 
salesman,  the  secret  being  in  our  cattle,  which  were 
choice.  For  instance,  Northern  buyers  could  see 
three  dollars  a  head  difference  in  three-year-old 
steers,  but  with  the  average  Texan  the  age  classi 
fied  them  all  alike.  My  boyhood  knowledge  of 
cattle  had  taught  me  the  difference,  but  in  range 
dealing  it  was  impossible  to  apply  the  principle.  I 
made  many  warm  friends  among  both  buyers  and 
drovers,  bringing  them  together  and  effecting  sales, 
and  it  was  really  a  matter  of  regret  that  I  had 
to  leave  before  the  season  was  over.  I  loved  the 
atmosphere  of  dicker  and  traffic,  had  made  one 
of  the  largest  sales  of  the  season  with  our  beeves, 
and  was  leaving,  firm  in  the  conviction  that  I  had 
overlooked  no  feature  of  the  market  of  future 
value. 

After  selling  the  oxen  we  broke  some  of  our 
saddle  stock  to  harness,  altered  the  wagon  tongue 
for  horses,  and  started  across  the  country  for  home, 
taking  our  full  remuda  with  us.  Where  I  had  gone 


88  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

up  the  trail  with  five  horses,  I  was  going  back  with 
twenty ;  some  of  the  oxen  I  had  sold  at  treble  their 
original  cost,  while  none  of  them  failed  to  double 
my  money  —  on  credit.  Taking  it  all  in  all,  I  had 
never  seen  such  good  times  and  made  money  as 
easily.  On  the  back  track  we  followed  the  trail, 
but  instead  of  going  down  the  Washita  as  we  had 
come,  we  followed  the  Chisholm  trail  to  the  Texas 
boundary,  crossing  at  what  was  afterward  known 
as  Red  River  Station.  From  there  home  was  an 
easy  matter,  and  after  an  absence  of  four  months 
and  five  days  the  outfit  rode  into  the  Edwards 
ranch  with  a  flourish. 


CHAPTEK  VI 

SOWING  WILD   OATS 

THE  results  from  driving  cattle  north  were  a 
surprise  to  every  one.  My  employers  were  delighted 
with  their  experiment,  the  general  expense  of  han 
dling  the  herd  not  exceeding  fifty  cents  a  head. 
The  enterprise  had  netted  over  fifty-two  thousand 
dollars,  the  saddle  horses  had  returned  in  good 
condition,  while  due  credit  was  given  me  in  the 
general  management.  From  my  sale  accounts  I 
made  out  a  statement,  and  once  my  expenses  were 
approved  it  was  an  easy  matter  to  apportion  each 
owner  his  just  dues  in  the  season's  drive.  This 
over  I  was  free  to  go  my  way.  The  only  incident 
of  moment  in  the  final  settlement  was  the  waggish 
contention  of  one  of  the  owners,  who  expressed 
amazement  that  I  ever  remitted  any  funds  or  re 
turned,  roguishly  admitting  that  no  one  expected 
it.  Then  suddenly,  pretending  to  have  discovered 
the  governing  motive,  he  summoned  Miss  Gertrude, 
and  embarrassed  her  with  a  profusion  of  thanks, 
averring  that  she  alone  had  saved  him  from  a  loss 
of  four  hundred  beeves. 

The  next  move  was  to  redeem  my  land  scrip. 


90  HEED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

The  surveyor  was  anxious  to  buy  a  portion  of  it,  but 
I  was  too  rich  to  part  with  even  a  single  section. 
During  our  conversation,  however,  it  developed  that 
he  held  his  commission  from  the  State,  and  when  I 
mentioned  my  intention  of  locating  land,  he  made 
application  to  do  the  surveying.  The  fact  that  I 
expected  to  make  my  locations  in  another  county 
made  no  difference  to  a  free-lance  official,  and  ac 
cordingly  we  came  to  an  agreement.  The  apple 
of  my  eye  was  a  valley  on  the  Clear  Fork,  above 
its  juncture  with  the  main  Brazos,  and  from  maps 
in  the  surveyor's  office  I  was  able  to  point  out  the 
locality  where  I  expected  to  make  my  locations. 
He  proved  an  obliging  official  and  gave  me  all 
the  routine  details,  and  an  appointment  was  made 
with  him  to  report  a  week  later  at  the  Edwards 
ranch.  A  wagon  and  cook  would  be  necessary, 
chain  carriers  and  flagmen  must  be  taken  along, 
and  I  began  skirmishing  about  for  an  outfit.  The 
three  hired  men  who  had  been  up  the  trail  with  me 
were  still  in  the  country,  and  I  engaged  them  and 
secured  a  cook.  George  Edwards  loaned  me  a 
wagon  and  two  yoke  of  oxen,  even  going  along  him 
self  for  company.  The  commissary  was  outfitted 
for  a  month's  stay,  and  a  day  in  advance  of  the 
expected  arrival  of  the  surveyor  the  outfit  was 
started  up  the  Brazos.  Each  of  the  men  had  one 
or  more  private  horses,  and  taking  all  of  mine 
along,  we  had  a  remuda  of  thirty  odd  saddle 


SOWING  WILD  OATS  91 

horses.  George  and  I  remained  behind,  and  on 
the  arrival  of  the  surveyor  we  rode  by  way  of 
Palo  Pinto,  the  county  seat,  to  which  all  unor 
ganized  territory  to  the  west  was  attached  for  legal 
purposes.  Our  chief  motive  in  passing  the  town 
was  to  see  if  there  were  any  lands  located  near  the 
juncture  of  the  Clear  Fork  with  the  mother  stream, 
and  thus  secure  an  established  corner  from  which 
to  begin  our  survey.  But  the  records  showed  no 
land  taken  up  around  the  confluence  of  these  water 
courses,  making  it  necessary  to  establish  a  corner. 
Under  the  old  customs,  handed  down  from  the 
Spanish  to  the  Texans,  corners  were  always  estab 
lished  from  natural  landmarks.  The  union  of 
creeks  and  rivers,  mounds,  lagoons,  outcropping 
of  rock,  in  fact  anything  unchangeable  and  estab 
lished  by  nature,  were  used  as  a  point  of  commence 
ment.  In  the  locating  of  Spanish  land  grants  a 
century  and  a  half  previous,  sand-dunes  were  fre 
quently  used,  and  when  these  old  concessions  be 
came  of  value  and  were  surveyed,  some  of  the 
corners  had  shifted  a  mile  or  more  by  the  action 
of  the  wind  and  seasons  on  the  sand-hills.  Accord 
ingly,  on  overtaking  our  outfit  we  headed  for  the 
juncture  of  the  Brazos  and  Clear  Fork,  reaching 
our  destination  the  second  day.  The  first  thing 
was  to  establish  a  corner  or  commencement  point. 
Some  heavy  timber  grew  around  the  confluence, 
so,  selecting  an  old  patriarch  pin  oak  between  the 


92  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

two  streams,  we  notched  the  tree  and  ran  a  line 
to  low  water  at  the  juncture  of  the  two  rivers. 
Other  witness  trees  were  established  and  notched, 
lines  were  run  at  angles  to  the  banks  of  either 
stream,  and  a  hole  was  dug  two  feet  deep  between 
the  roots  of  the  pin  oak,  a  stake  set  therein,  and 
the  excavation  filled  with  charcoal  and  covered.  A 
legal  corner  or  commencement  point  was  thus 
established;  but  as  the  land  that  I  coveted  lay 
some  distance  up  the  Clear  Fork,  it  was  necessary 
first  to  run  due  south  six  miles  and  establish  a 
corner,  and  thence  run  west  the  same  distance  and 
locate  another  one. 

The  thirty  sections  of  land  scrip  would  entitle 
me  to  a  block  of  ground  five  by  six  miles  in  extent, 
and  I  concluded  to  locate  the  bulk  of  it  on  the 
south  side  of  the  Clear  Fork.  A  permanent  camp 
was  now  established,  the  actual  work  of  locating 
the  land  requiring  about  ten  days,  when  the  sur 
veyor  and  Edwards  set  out  on  their  return.  They 
were  to  touch  at  the  county  seat,  record  the  estab 
lished  corners  and  file  my  locations,  leaving  the 
other  boys  and  me  behind.  It  was  my  intention 
to  build  a  corral  and  possibly  a  cabin  on  the  land, 
having  no  idea  that  we  would  remain  more  than  a 
few  weeks  longer.  Timber  was  plentiful,  and, 
selecting  a  site  well  out  on  the  prairie,  we  began 
the  corral.  It  was  no  easy  task ;  palisades  were 
cut  twelve  feet  long  and  out  of  durable  woods,  and 


SOWING  WILD  OATS  93 

the  gate-posts  were  fourteen  inches  in  diameter  at 
the  small  end,  requiring  both  yoke  of  oxen  to  draw 
them  to  the  chosen  site.  The  latter  were  cut  two 
feet  longer  than  the  palisades,  the  extra  length 
being  inserted  in  the  ground,  giving  them  a  sta 
bility  to  carry  the  bars  with  which  the  gateway 
was  closed.  Ten  days  were  spent  in  cutting  and 
drawing  timber,  some  of  the  larger  palisades  being 
split  in  two  so  as  to  enable  five  men  to  load  them 
on  the  wagon.  The  digging  of  the  narrow  trench, 
five  feet  deep,  in  which  the  palisades  were  set 
upright,  was  a  sore  trial;  but  the  ground  was 
sandy,  and  by  dint  of  perseverance  it  was  accom 
plished.  Instead  of  a  few  weeks,  over  a  month  was 
spent  on  the  corral,  but  when  it  was  finished  it 
would  hold  a  thousand  stampeding  cattle  through 
the  stormiest  night  that  ever  blew. 

After  finishing  the  corral  we  hunted  a  week. 
The  country  was  alive  with  game  of  all  kinds,  even 
an  occasional  buffalo,  while  wild  and  unbranded 
cattle  were  seen  daily.  None  of  the  men  seemed 
anxious  to  leave  the  valley,  but  the  commissary 
had  to  be  replenished,  so  two  of  us  made  the  trip 
to  Belknap  with  a  pack  horse,  returning  the  next 
day  with  meal,  sugar,  and  coffee.  A  cabin  was  begun 
and  completed  in  ten  days,  a  crude  but  stable  affair, 
with  clapboard  roof,  clay  floor,  and  ample  fire 
place.  It  was  now  late  in  September,  and  as  the 
usual  branding  season  was  at  hand,  cow-hunting 


94  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

outfits  might  be  expected  to  pass  down  the  valley. 
The  advantage  of  corrals  would  naturally  make  my 
place  headquarters  for  cowmen,  and  we  accordingly 
settled  down  until  the  branding  season  was  over. 
But  the  abundance  of  mavericks  and  wild  cattle 
was  so  tempting  that  we  had  three  hundred  under 
herd  when  the  first  cow-hunting  outfits  arrived.  At 
one  lake  on  what  is  now  known  as  South  Prairie, 
in  a  single  moonlight  night,  we  roped  and  tied  down 
forty  head,  the  next  morning  finding  thirty  of  them 
unbranded  and  therefore  unowned.  All  tame  cat 
tle  would  naturally  water  in  the  daytime,  and  any 
thing  coming  in  at  night  fell  a  victim  to  our  ropes. 
A  wooden  toggle  was  fastened  with  rawhide  to  its 
neck,  so  it  would  trail  between  its  forelegs,  to  pre 
vent  running,  when  the  wild  maverick  was  freed 
and  allowed  to  enter  the  herd.  After  a  week  or  ten 
days,  if  an  animal  showed  any  disposition  to  quiet 
down,  it  was  again  thrown,  branded,  and  the  toggle 
removed.  We  corralled  the  little  herd  every  night, 
adding  to  it  daily,  scouting  far  and  wide  for  un 
owned  or  wild  cattle.  But  when  other  outfits  came 
up  or  down  the  valley  of  the  Clear  Fork  we  joined 
forces  with  them,  tendering  our  corrals  for  brand 
ing  purposes,  our  rake-off  being  the  mavericks  and 
eligible  strays.  Many  a  fine  quarter  of  beef  was 
left  at  our  cabin  by  passing  ranchmen,  and  when 
the  gathering  ended  we  had  a  few  over  five  hun 
dred  cattle  for  our  time  and  trouble. 


SOWING  WILD  OATS  95 

Fine  weather  favored  us  and  we  held  the  mav 
ericks  under  herd  until  late  in  December.  The  wild 
ones  gradually  became  gentle,  and  with  constant 
handling  these  wild  animals  were  located  until  they 
would  come  in  of  their  own  accord  for  the  priv 
ilege  of  sleeping  in  a  corral.  But  when  winter  ap 
proached  the  herd  was  turned  free,  that  the  cattle 
might  protect  themselves  from  storms,  and  we  gath 
ered  our  few  effects  together  and  started  for  the 
settlements.  It  was  with  reluctance  that  I  left  that 
primitive  valley.  Somehow  or  other,  primal  condi 
tions  possessed  a  charm  for  me  which,  coupled  with 
an  innate  love  of  the  land  and  the  animals  that  in 
habit  it,  seemed  to  influence  and  outline  my  future 
course  of  life.  The  pride  of  possession  was  mine ; 
with  my  own  hands  and  abilities  had  I  earned  the 
land,  while  the  overflow  from  a  thousand  hills 
stocked  my  new  ranch.  I  was  now  the  owner  of 
lands  and  cattle ;  my  father  in  his  palmiest  days 
never  dreamed  of  such  possessions  as  were  mine, 
while  youth  and  opportunity  encouraged  me  to 
greater  exertions. 

We  reached  the  Edwards  ranch  a  few  days  before 
Christmas.  The  boys  were  settled  with  and  re 
turned  to  their  homes,  and  I  was  once  more  adrift. 
Forty  odd  calves  had  been  branded  as  the  increase 
of  my  mavericking  of  the  year  before,  and,  still 
basking  in  the  smile  of  fortune,  I  found  a  letter 
awaiting  me  from  Major  Seth  Mabry  of  Austin, 


96  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

anxious  to  engage  my  services  as  a  trail  foreman 
for  the  coming  summer.  I  had  met  Major  Seth  the 
spring  before  at  Abilene,  and  was  instrumental  in 
finding  him  a  buyer  for  his  herd,  and  otherwise  we 
became  fast  friends.  There  were  no  outstanding 
obligations  to  my  former  employers,  so  when  a 
protest  was  finally  raised  against  my  going,  I  had 
the  satisfaction  of  vouching  for  George  Edwards, 
to  the  manner  born,  and  a  better  range  cowman 
than  I  was.  The  same  group  of  ranchmen  expected 
to  drive  another  herd  the  coming  spring,  and  I 
made  it  a  point  to  see  each  one  personally,  urging 
that  nothing  but  choice  cattle  should  be  sent  up 
the  trail.  My  long  acquaintance  with  the  junior 
Edwards  enabled  me  to  speak  emphatically  and  to 
the  point,  and  I  lectured  him  thoroughly  as  to  the 
requirements  of  the  Abilene  market. 

I  notified  Major  Mabry  that  I  would  be  on  hand 
within  a  month.  The  holiday  season  soon  passed, 
and  leaving  my  horses  at  the  Edwards  ranch,  I 
saddled  the  most  worthless  one  and  started  south. 
The  trip  was  uneventful,  except  that  I  traded  horses 
twice,  reaching  my  destination  within  a  week,  hav 
ing  seen  no  country  en  route  that  could  compare 
with  the  valley  of  the  Clear  Fork.  The  capital  city 
was  a  straggling  village  on  the  banks  of  the  Colorado 
River,  inert  through  political  usurpation,  yet  the 
home  of  many  fine  people.  Quite  a  number  of  cow 
men  resided  there,  owning  ranches  in  outlying  and 


SOWING  WILD  OATS  97 

adjoining  counties,  among  them  being  my  acquaint 
ance  of  the  year  before  and  present  employer.  It 
was  too  early  by  nearly  a  month  to  begin  active 
operations,  and  I  contented  myself  about  town, 
making  the  acquaintance  of  other  cowmen  and  their 
foremen  who  expected  to  drive  that  year.  New 
Orleans  had  previously  been  the  only  outlet  for  beef 
cattle  in  southern  Texas,  and  even  in  the  spring  of 
'69  very  few  had  any  confidence  of  a  market  in  the 
north.  Major  Mabry,  however,  was  going  to  drive 
two  herds  to  Abilene,  one  of  beeves  and  the  other 
of  younger  steers,  dry  cows,  and  thrifty  two-year- 
old  heifers,  and  I  was  to  have  charge  of  the  heavy 
cattle.  Both  herds  would  be  put  up  in  Llano 
County,  it  being  the  intention  to  start  with  the 
grass.  Mules  were  to  be  worked  to  the  wagons, 
oxen  being  considered  too  slow,  while  both  outfits 
were  to  be  mounted  seven  horses  to  the  man. 

During  my  stay  at  Austin  I  frequently  made 
inquiry  for  land  scrip.  Nearly  all  the  merchants  had 
more  or  less,  the  current  prices  being  about  five 
cents  an  acre.  There  was  a  clear  distinction,  how 
ever,  in  case  one  was  a  buyer  or  seller,  the  former 
being  shown  every  attention.  I  allowed  the  impres 
sion  to  circulate  that  I  would  buy,  which  brought 
me  numerous  offers,  and  before  leaving  the  town  I 
secured  twenty  sections  for  five  hundred  dollars.  I 
needed  just  that  amount  to  cover  a  four-mile  bend 
of  the  Clear  Fork  on  the  west  end  of  my  new  ranch, 


98  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

—  a  possession  which  gave  me  ten  miles  of  that 
virgin  valley.  My  employer  congratulated  me  on 
my  investment,  and  assured  me  that  if  the  peo 
ple  ever  overthrew  the  Keconstruction  usurpers  the 
public  domain  would  no  longer  be  bartered  away 
for  chips  and  whetstones.  I  was  too  busy  to  take 
much  interest  in  the  political  situation,  and,  so  long 
as  I  was  prosperous  and  employed,  gave  little  heed 
to  politics. 

Major  Mabry  owned  a  ranch  and  extensive  cat 
tle  interests  northwest  in  Llano  County.  As  we 
expected  to  start  the  herds  as  early  as  possible, 
the  latter  part  of  February  found  us  at  the  ranch 
actively  engaged  in  arranging  for  the  summer's 
work.  There  were  horses  to  buy,  wagons  to  outfit, 
and  hands  to  secure,  and  a  busy  fortnight  was  spent 
in  getting  ready  for  the  drive.  The  spring  before 
I  had  started  out  in  debt ;  now,  on  permission  being 
given  me,  I  bought  ten  horses  for  my  own  use  and 
invested  the  balance  of  my  money  in  four  yoke  of 
oxen.  Had  I  remained  in  Palo  Pinto  County  the 
chances  were  that  I  might  have  enlarged  my  hold 
ings  in  the  coming  drive,  as  in  order  to  have  me 
remain  several  offered  to  sell  me  cattle  on  credit. 
But  so  long  as  I  was  enlarging  my  experience  I  was 
content,  while  the  wages  offered  me  were  double 
what  I  received  the  summer  before. 

We  went  into  camp  and  began  rounding  up  near 
the  middle  of  March.  All  classes  of  cattle  were  first 


SOWING  WILD  OATS  99 

gathered  into  one  herd,  after  which  the  beeves  were 
cut  separate  and  taken  charge  of  by  my  outfit.  We 
gathered  a  few  over  fifteen  hundred  of  the  latter, 
all  prairie-raised  cattle,  four  years  old  or  over,  and 
in  the  single  ranch  brand  of  my  employer.  Major 
Seth  had  also  contracted  for  one  thousand  other 
beeves,  and  it  became  our  duty  to  receive  them. 
These  outside  contingents  would  have  to  be  road- 
branded  before  starting,  as  they  were  in  a  dozen  or 
more  brands,  the  work  being  done  in  a  chute  built 
for  that  purpose.  My  employer  and  I  fully  agreed 
on  the  quality  of  cattle  to  be  received,  and  when 
possible  we  both  passed  on  each  tender  of  beeves 
before  accepting  them.  The  two  herds  were  being 
held  separate,  and  a  friendly  rivalry  existed  be 
tween  the  outfits  as  to  which  herd  would  be  ready 
to  start  first.  It  only  required  a  few  days  extra  to 
receive  and  road-brand  the  outside  cattle,  when  all 
were  ready  to  start.  As  Major  Seth  knew  the  most 
practical  route,  in  deference  to  his  years  and  ex 
perience  I  insisted  that  he  should  take  the  lead 
until  after  Red  River  was  crossed.  I  had  been  urg 
ing  the  Chisholm  trail  in  preference  to  more  east 
ern  ones,  and  with  the  compromise  that  I  should 
take  the  lead  after  passing  Fort  Worth,  the  two 
herds  started  on  the  last  day  of  March. 

There  was  no  particular  trail  to  follow.  The 
country  was  all  open,  and  the  grass  was  coming 
rapidly,  while  the  horses  and  cattle  were  shedding 


100  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

their  winter  coats  with  the  change  of  the  season. 
Fine  weather  favored  us,  no  rains  at  night  and 
few  storms,  and  within  two  weeks  we  passed  Fort 
Worth,  after  which  I  took  the  lead.    I  remember 
that  at  the  latter  point  I  wrote  a  letter  to  the 
elder  Edwards,  inclosing  my  land  scrip,  and  ask 
ing  him  to  send  a  man  out  to  my  new  ranch  occa 
sionally  to  see  that  the  improvements  were  not 
destroyed.    Several  herds  had  already  passed  the 
fort,  their  destination  being  the  same  as  ours,  and 
from  thence  onward  we  had  the  advantage  of  fol 
lowing  a  trail.    As  we  neared  Ked  Kiver,  nearly  all 
the  herds  bore  off  to  the  eastward,  but  we  held  our 
course,  crossing  into  the  Chickasaw  Nation  at  the 
regular  Chisholm  ford.    A  few  beggarly  Indians, 
renegades   from   the  Kiowas   and  Comanches  on 
the  west,  annoyed  us  for  the  first  week,  but  were 
easily  appeased  with  a  lame  or  stray  beef.    The  two 
herds  held  rather  close  together  as  a  matter  of 
mutual  protection,  as  in  some  of  the  encampments 
were  fully  fifty  lodges  with  possibly  as  many  able, 
bodied  warriors.    But  after  crossing  the  Washita 
Kiver  no  further  trouble  was  encountered  from  the 
natives,  and  we  swept  northward  at  the  steady  pace 
of  an  advancing  army.    Other  herds  were  seen  in 
our  rear  and  front,  and  as  we  neared  the  Kansas 
line  several  long  columns  of  cattle  were  sighted 
coming  in  over  the  safer  eastern  routes. 

The  last  lap  of  the  drive  was  reached.   A  fort- 


SOWING  WILD  CATS  101 

night  later  we  went  into  camp  within  twelve  miles 
of  Abilene,  having  been  on  tie  .traJl  two  -rcbilfl-s 
and  eleven  days.  The  same  week  we  moved  north 
of  the  railroad,  finding  ample  range  within  seven 
miles  of  town.  Herds  were  coming  in  rapidly,  and 
it  was  important  to  secure  good  grazing  grounds 
for  our  cattle.  Buyers  were  arriving  from  every 
territory  in  the  Northwest,  including  California, 
while  the  usual  contingent  of  Eastern  dealers,  ship 
pers,  and  market-scalpers  was  on  hand.  It  could 
hardly  be  said  that  prices  had  yet  opened,  though 
several  contracted  herds  had  already  been  delivered, 
while  every  purchaser  was  bearing  the  market  and 
prophesying  a  drive  of  a  quarter  million  cattle. 
The  drovers,  on  the  other  hand,  were  combating 
every  report  in  circulation,  even  offering  to  wager 
that  the  arrivals  of  stock  for  the  entire  summer 
would  not  exceed  one  hundred  thousand  head. 
Cowmen  reported  en  route  with  ten  thousand  beeves 
came  in  with  one  fifth  the  number,  and  sellers  held 
the  whip  hand,  the  market  actually  opening  at  bet 
ter  figures  than  the  summer  before.  Once  prices 
were  established,  I  was  in  the  thick  of  the  fight, 
selling  my  oxen  the  first  week  to  a  freighter,  con 
stantly  on  the  skirmish  for  a  buyer,  and  never 
failing  to  recognize  one  with  whom  I  had  done 
business  the  summer  before.  In  case  Major  Mabry 
had  nothing  to  suit,  the  herd  in  charge  of  George 
Edwards  was  always  shown,  and  I  easily  effected 


1.-02  BEEP  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

two  sales,. aggregating  fifteen  hundred  head,  from 
the/ latter,  cattle  j- with,  customers  of  the  year  pre 
vious. 

But  my  zeal  for  bartering  in  cattle  came  to  a 
sudden  end  near  the  close  of  June.  A  conservative 
estimate  of  the  arrivals  then  in  sight  or  known  to 
be  en  route  for  Abilene  was  placed  at  one  hundred 
and  fifty  thousand  cattle.  Yet  instead  of  any  weak 
ening  in  prices,  they  seemed  to  strengthen  with  the 
influx  of  buyers  from  the  corn  regions,  as  the  pros 
pects  of  the  season  assured  a  bountiful  new  crop. 
Where  States  had  quarantined  against  Texas  cattle 
the  law  was  easily  circumvented  by  a  statement 
that  the  cattle  were  immune  from  having  wintered 
in  the  north,  which  satisfied  the  statutes  —  as  there 
was  no  doubt  but  they  had  wintered  somewhere. 
Steer  cattle  of  acceptable  age  and  smoothness  of 
build  were  in  demand  by  feeders ;  all  classes  in 
fact  felt  a  stimulus.  My  beeves  were  sold  for  de 
livery  north  of  Cheyenne,  Wyoming,  the  buyers, 
who  were  ranchmen  as  well  as  army  contractors, 
taking  the  herd  complete,  including  the  remuda 
and  wagon.  Under  the  terms,  the  cattle  were  to 
start  immediately  and  be  grazed  through.  I  was 
given  until  the  middle  of  September  to  reach  my 
destination,  and  at  once  moved  out  on  a  northwest 
course.  On  reaching  the  Republican  River,  we  fol 
lowed  it  to  the  Colorado  line,  and  then  tacked  north 
for  Cheyenne.  Reporting  our  progress  to  the  buy- 


SOWING  WILD  OATS  103 

ers,  we  were  met  and  directed  to  pass  to  the  east 
ward  of  that  village,  where  we  halted  a  week,  and 
seven  hundred  of  the  fattest  beeves  were  cut  out 
for  delivery  at  Fort  Kussell.  By  various  excuses 
we  were  detained  until  frost  fell  before  we  reached 
the  ranch,  and  a  second  and  a  third  contingent  of 
beeves  were  cut  out  for  other  deliveries,  making  it 
nearly  the  middle  of  October  before  I  was  finally 
relieved. 

With  the  exception  of  myself,  a  new  outfit  of 
men  had  been  secured  at  Abilene.  Some  of  them 
were  retained  at  the  ranch  of  the  contractors,  the 
remainder  being  discharged,  all  of  us  returning 
to  Cheyenne  together,  whence  we  scattered  to  the 
four  winds.  I  spent  a  week  in  Denver,  meeting 
Charlie  Goodnight,  who  had  again  fought  his  way 
up  the  Pecos  route  and  delivered  his  cattle  to  the 
contractors  at  Fort  Logan.  Continuing  homeward, 
I  took  the  train  for  Abilene,  hesitating  whether  to 
stop  there  or  visit  my  brother  in  Missouri  before 
returning  to  Texas.  I  had  twelve  hundred  dollars 
with  me,  as  the  proceeds  of  my  wages,  horses,  and 
oxen,  and,  feeling  rather  affluent,  I  decided  to  stop 
over  a  day  at  the  new  trail  town.  I  knew  the  mar 
ket  was  virtually  over,  and  what  evil  influence  ever 
suggested  my  stopping  at  Abilene  is  unexplainable. 
But  I  did  stop,  and  found  things  just  as  I  expected, 
—  everybody  sold  out  and  gone  home.  A  few  trail 
foremen  were  still  hanging  around  the  town  under 


104  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

the  pretense  of  attending  to  unsettled  business, 
and  these  welcomed  me  with  a  fraternal  greeting. 
Two  of  them  who  had  served  in  the  Confederate 
army  came  to  me  and  frankly  admitted  that  they 
were  broke,  and  begged  me  to  help  them  out  of 
town  by  redeeming  their  horses  and  saddles.  Feed 
bills  had  accumulated  and  hotel  accounts  were  un 
paid  ;  the  appeals  of  the  rascals  would  have  moved 
a  stone  to  pity. 

The  upshot  of  the  whole  matter  was  that  I  bought 
a  span  of  mules  and  wagon  and  invited  seven  of 
the  boys  to  accompany  me  overland  to  Texas.  My 
friends  insisted  that  we  could  sell  the  outfit  in 
the  lower  country  for  more  than  cost,  but  before 
I  got  out  of  town  my  philanthropic  venture  had 
absorbed  over  half  my  savings.  As  long  as  I  had 
money  the  purse  seemed  a  public  one,  and  all  the 
boys  borrowed  just  as  freely  as  if  they  expected 
to  repay  it.  I  am  sure  they  felt  grateful,  and  had 
I  been  one  of  the  needy  no  doubt  any  of  my  friends 
would  have  shared  his  purse  with  me. 

It  was  a  delightful  trip  across  the  Indian  Terri 
tory,  and  we  reached  Sherman,  Texas,  just  before 
the  holidays.  Every  one  had  become  tired  of  the 
wagon,  and  I  was  fortunate  enough  to  sell  it  with 
out  loss.  Those  who  had  saddle  horses  excused 
themselves  and  hurried  home  for  the  Christmas 
festivities,  leaving  a  quartette  of  us  behind.  But 
before  the  remainder  of  us  proceeded  to  our  desti- 


SOWING  WILD  OATS  105 

nations  two  of  the  boys  discovered  a  splendid  open 
ing  for  a  monte  game,  in  which  we  could  easily 
recoup  all  our  expenses  for  the  trip.  I  was  the 
only  dissenter  to  the  programme,  not  even  know 
ing  the  game ;  but  under  the  pressure  which  was 
brought  to  bear  I  finally  yielded,  and  became 
banker  for  my  friends.  The  results  are  easily  told. 
The  second  night  there  was  heavy  play,  and  before 
ten  o'clock  the  monte  bank  closed  for  want  of 
funds,  it  having  been  tapped  for  its  last  dollar. 
The  next  morning  I  took  stage  for  Dallas,  where  I 
arrived  with  less  than  twenty  dollars,  and  spent  the 
most  miserable  Christmas  day  of  my  life.  I  had 
written  George  Edwards  from  Denver  that  I  ex 
pected  to  go  to  Missouri,  and  asked  him  to  take 
my  horses  and  go  out  to  the  little  ranch  and  brand 
my  calves.  There  was  no  occasion  now  to  contradict 
my  advice  of  that  letter,  neither  would  I  go  near 
the  Edwards  ranch,  yet  I  hungered  for  that  land 
scrip  and  roundly  cursed  myself  for  being  a  fool. 
It  would  be  two  months  and  a  half  before  spring 
work  opened,  and  what  to  do  in  the  mean  time  was 
the  one  absorbing  question.  My  needs  were  too 
urgent  to  allow  me  to  remain  idle  long,  and,  drift 
ing  south,  working  when  work  was  to  be  had,  at 
last  I  reached  the  home  of  my  soldier  crony  in 
Washington  County,  walking  and  riding  in  country 
wagons  the  last  hundred  miles  of  the  distance.  No 
experience  in  my  life  ever  humiliated  me  as  that 


106  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

one  did,  yet  I  have  laughed  about  it  since.  I  may 
have  previously  heard  of  riches  taking  wings,  but 
in  this  instance,  now  mellowed  by  time,  no  injustice 
will  be  done  by  simply  recording  it  as  the  parting 
of  a  fool  and  his  money. 


CHAPTEK  VII 
"THE  ANGEL" 

THE  winds  of  adversity  were  tempered  by  the  wel 
come  extended  me  by  my  old  comrade  and  his 
wife.  There  was  no  concealment  as  to  my  financial 
condition,  but  when  I  explained  the  causes  my 
former  crony  laughed  at  me  until  the  tears  stood 
in  his  eyes.  Nor  did  I  protest,  because  I  so  richly 
deserved  it.  Fortunately  the  circumstances  of  my 
friends  had  bettered  since  my  previous  visit,  and  I 
was  accordingly  relieved  from  any  feeling  of  intru 
sion.  In  two  short  years  the  wheel  had  gone  round, 
and  I  was  walking  heavily  on  my  uppers  and  con 
tinually  felt  like  a  pauper  or  poor  relation.  To 
make  matters  more  embarrassing,  I  could  appeal 
to  no  one,  and,  fortified  by  pride  from  birth,  I 
ground  my  teeth  over  resolutions  that  will  last  me 
till  death.  Any  one  of  half  a  dozen  friends,  had 
they  known  my  true  condition,  would  have  gladly 
come  to  my  aid,  but  circumstances  prevented  me 
from  making  any  appeal.  To  my  brother  in  Mis 
souri  I  had  previously  written  of  my  affluence ;  as 
for  friends  in  Palo  Pinto  County,  —  well,  for  the 
very  best  of  reasons  my  condition  would  remain  a 


108  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

sealed  book  in  that  quarter;  and  to  appeal  to  Major 
Mabry  might  arouse  his  suspicions.  I  had  handled 
a  great  deal  of  money  for  him,  accounting  for  every 
cent,  but  had  he  known  of  my  inability  to  take  care 
of  my  own  frugal  earnings  it  might  have  aroused 
his  distrust.  I  was  sure  of  a  position  with  him 
again  as  trail  foreman,  and  not  for  the  world  would 
I  have  had  him  know  that  I  could  be  such  a  fool 
as  to  squander  my  savings  thoughtlessly. 

What  little  correspondence  I  conducted  that 
winter  was  by  roundabout  methods.  I  occasionally 
wrote  my  brother  that  I  was  wallowing  in  wealth, 
always  inclosing  a  letter  to  Gertrude  Edwards  with 
instructions  to  remail,  conveying  the  idea  to  her 
family  that  I  was  spending  the  winter  with  rela 
tives  in  Missouri.  As  yet  there  was  no  tacit  un 
derstanding  between  Miss  Gertrude  and  me,  but 
I  conveyed  that  impression  to  my  brother,  and  as  I 
knew  he  had  run  away  with  his  wife,  I  had  confi 
dence  he  would  do  my  bidding.  In  writing  my 
employer  I  reported  myself  as  busy  dealing  in  land 
scrip,  and  begged  him  not  to  insist  on  my  appear 
ance  until  it  was  absolutely  necessary.  He  replied 
that  I  might  have  until  the  15th  of  March  in  which 
to  report  at  Austin,  as  my  herd  had  been  contracted 
for  north  in  Williamson  County.  Major  Mabry 
expected  to  drive  three  herds  that  spring,  the  one 
already  mentioned  and  two  from  Llano  County, 
where  he  had  recently  acquired  another  ranch  with 


"THE  ANGEL"  109 

an  extensive  stock  of  cattle.  It  therefore  behooved 
me  to  keep  my  reputation  unsullied,  a  rather  dif 
ficult  thing  to  do  when  our  escapade  at  Sherman 
was  known  to  three  other  trail  foremen.  They 
might  look  upon  it  as  a  good  joke,  while  to  me  it 
was  a  serious  matter. 

Had  there  been  anything  to  do  in  Washington 
County,  it  was  my  intention  to  go  to  work.  The 
dredging  company  had  departed  for  newer  fields, 
there  was  no  other  work  in  sight,  and  I  was  com 
pelled  to  fold  my  hands  and  bide  my  time.  My 
crony  and  I  blotted  out  the  days  by  hunting  deer 
and  turkeys,  using  hounds  for  the  former  and 
shooting  the  animals  at  game  crossings.  By  using 
a  turkey-call  we  could  entice  the  gobblers  within 
rifle-shot,  and  in  several  instances  we  were  able  to 
locate  their  roosts.  The  wild  turkey  of  Texas  was 
a  wary  bird,  and  although  I  have  seen  flocks  of 
hundreds,  it  takes  a  crafty  hunter  to  bag  one.  I 
have  always  loved  a  gun  and  been  fond  of  hunting, 
yet  the  time  hung  heavy  on  my  hands,  and  I  counted 
the  days  like  a  prisoner  until  I  could  go  to  work. 
But  my  sentence  finally  expired,  and  preparations 
were  made  for  my  start  to  Austin.  My  friends 
offered  their  best  wishes,  —  about  all  they  had,  — 
and  my  old  comrade  went  so  far  as  to  take  me  one 
day  on  horseback  to  where  he  had  an  acquaint 
ance  living.  There  we  stayed  over  night,  which 
was  more  than  half  way  to  my  destination,  and  the 


110  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

next  morning  we  parted,  he  to  his  home  with  the 
horses,  while  I  traveled  on  foot  or  trusted  to  coun 
try  wagons.  I  arrived  in  Austin  on  the  appointed 
day,  with  less  than  five  dollars  in  my  pocket,  and 
registered  at  the  best  hotel  in  the  capital.  I  needed 
a  saddle,  having  sold  mine  in  Wyoming  the  fall 
before,  and  at  once  reported  to  my  employer.  For 
tunately  my  arrival  was  being  awaited  to  start  a 
remuda  and  wagon  to  Williamson  County,  and 
when  I  assured  Major  Mabry  that  all  I  lacked  was 
a  saddle,  he  gave  me  an  order  on  a  local  dealer, 
and  we  started  that  same  evening. 

At  last  I  was  saved.  With  the  opening  of  work 
my  troubles  lifted  like  a  night  fog  before  the  ris 
ing  sun.  Even  the  first  view  of  the  remuda  revived 
my  spirits,  as  I  had  been  allotted  one  hundred  fine 
cow-horses.  They  had  been  brought  up  during  the 
winter,  had  run  in  a  good  pasture  for  some  time, 
and  with  the  opening  of  spring  were  in  fine  condi 
tion.  Many  trail  men  were  short-sighted  in  regard 
to  mounting  their  outfits,  and  although  we  had  our 
differences,  I  want  to  say  that  Major  Mabry  and 
his  later  associates  never  expected  a  man  to  render 
an  honest  day's  work  unless  he  was  properly  sup 
plied  with  horses.  My  allowance  for  the  spring  of 
1870  was  again  seven  horses  to  the  man,  with  two 
extra  for  the  foreman,  which  at  that  early  day  in 
trailing  cattle  was  considered  the  maximum  where 
Kansas  was  the  destination.  Many  drovers  allowed 


"THE  ANGEL"  111 

only  five  horses  to  the  man,  but  their  men  were 
frequently  seen  walking  with  the  herd,  their  mounts 
mingling  with  the  cattle,  unable  to  carry  their  riders 
longer. 

The  receiving  of  the  herd  in  Williamson  County 
was  an  easy  matter.  Four  prominent  ranchmen 
were  to  supply  the  beeves  to  the  number  of  three 
thousand.  Nearly  every  hoof  was  in  the  straight 
ranch  brand  of  the  sellers,  only  some  two  hundred 
being  mixed  brands  and  requiring  the  usual  road- 
branding.  In  spite  of  every  effort  to  hold  the  herd 
down  to  the  contracted  number,  we  received  one 
hundred  and  fifty  extra ;  but  then  they  were  cattle 
that  no  justifiable  excuse  could  be  offered  in  refus 
ing.  The  last  beeves  were  received  on  the  22d  of 
the  month,  and  after  cutting  separate  all  cattle  of 
outside  brands,  they  were  sent  to  the  chute  to  re 
ceive  the  road-mark.  Major  Mabry  was  present, 
and  a  controversy  arose  between  the  sellers  and 
himself  over  our  refusal  to  road-brand,  or  at  least 
vent  the  ranch  brands,  on  the  great  bulk  of  the  herd. 
Too  many  brands  on  an  animal  was  an  objection  to 
the  shippers  and  feeders  of  the  North,  and  we  were 
anxious  to  cater  to  their  wishes  as  far  as  possible. 
The  sellers  protested  against  the  cattle  leaving 
their  range  without  some  mark  'to  indicate  their 
change  of  ownership.  The  country  was  all  open ; 
in  case  of  a  stampede  and  loss  of  cattle  within  a 
few  hundred  miles  they  were  certain  to  drift  back 


112  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

to  their  home  range,  with  nothing  to  distinguish 
them  from  their  brothers  of  the  same  age.  Flesh 
marks  are  not  a  good  title  by  which  to  identify 
one's  property,  where  those  possessions  consist  of 
range  cattle,  and  the  law  recognized  the  holding 
brand  as  the  hall-mark  of  ownership.  But  a  com 
promise  was  finally  agreed  upon,  whereby  we  were 
to  run  the  beeves  through  the  chute  and  cut  the 
brush  from  their  tails.  In  a  four  or  five  year  old 
animal  this  tally-mark  would  hold  for  a  year,  and 
in  no  wise  work  any  hardship  to  the  animal  in 
warding  off  insect  life.  In  case  of  any  loss  on  the 
trail  my  employer  agreed  to  pay  one  dollar  a  head 
for  regathering  any  stragglers  that  returned  within 
a  year.  The  proposition  was  a  fair  one,  the  ranch 
men  yielded,  and  we  ran  the  whole  herd  through 
the  chute,  cutting  the  brush  within  a  few  inches  of 
the  end  of  the  tail-bone.  By  tightly  wrapping  the 
brush  once  around  the  blade  of  a  sharp  knife,  it 
was  quick  work  to  thus  vent  a  chutef  ul  of  cattle, 
both  the  road -branding  and  tally-marking  being 
done  in  two  days. 

The  herd  started  on  the  morning  of  the  25th. 
I  had  a  good  outfit  of  men,  only  four  of  whom 
were  with  me  the  year  before.  The  spring  could 
not  be  considered  an  early  one,  and  therefore  we 
traveled  slow  for  the  first  few  weeks,  meeting  with 
two  bad  runs,  three  days  apart,  but  without  the 
loss  of  a  hoof.  These  panics  among  the  cattle  were 


"THE  ANGEL"  113 

unexplainable,  as  they  were  always  gorged  with 
grass  and  water  at  bedding  time,  the  weather  was 
favorable,  no  unseemly  noises  were  heard  by  the 
men  on  guard,  and  both  runs  occurred  within  two 
hours  of  daybreak.  There  was  a  half-breed  Mexi 
can  in  the  outfit,  a  very  quiet  man,  and  when  the 
causes  of  the  stampedes  were  being  discussed  around 
the  camp-fire,  I  noticed  that  he  shrugged  his  shoul 
ders  in  derision  of  the  reasons  advanced.  The  half- 
breed  was  my  horse  wrangler,  old  in  years  and 
experience,  and  the  idea  struck  me  to  sound  him 
as  to  his  version  of  the  existing  trouble  among  the 
cattle.  He  was  inclined  to  be  distant,  but  I  ap 
proached  him  cautiously,  complimented  him  on  his 
handling  of  the  remuda,  rode  with  him  several 
hours,  and  adroitly  drew  out  his  opinion  of  what 
caused  our  two  stampedes.  As  he  had  never  worked 
with  the  herd,  his  first  question  was,  did  we  receive 
any  blind  cattle  or  had  any  gone  blind  since  we 
started?  He  then  informed  me  that  the  old  Span 
ish  rancheros  would  never  leave  a  sightless  animal 
in  a  corral  with  sound  ones  during  the  night  for 
fear  of  a  stampede.  He  cautioned  me  to  look  the 
herd  over  carefully,  and  if  there  was  a  blind  animal 
found  to  cut  it  out  or  the  trouble  would  be  repeated 
in  spite  of  all  precaution.  I  rode  back  and  met  the 
herd,  accosting  every  swing  man  on  one  side  with 
the  inquiry  if  any  blind  animal  had  been  seen, 
without  results  until  the  drag  end  of  the  cattle  was 


114  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

reached.  Two  men  were  at  the  rear,  and  when  ap 
proached  with  the  question,  both  admitted  noticing, 
for  the  past  week,  a  beef  which  acted  as  if  he  might 
be  crazy.  I  had  them  point  out  the  steer,  and  be 
fore  I  had  watched  him  ten  minutes  was  satisfied 
that  he  was  stone  blind.  He  was  a  fine,  big  fellow, 
in  splendid  flesh,  but  it  was  impossible  to  keep  him 
in  the  column  ;  he  was  always  straggling  out  and 
constantly  shying  from  imaginary  objects.  I  had 
the  steer  roped  for  three  or  four  nights  and  tied 
to  a  tree,  and  as  the  stampeding  ceased  we  cut  him 
out  every  evening  when  bedding  down  the  herd, 
and  allowed  him  to  sleep  alone.  The  poor  fellow 
followed  us,  never  venturing  to  leave  either  day  or 
night,  but  finally  fell  into  a  deep  ravine  and  broke 
his  neck.  His  affliction  had  befallen  him  on  the 
trail,  affecting  his  nervous  system  to  such  an  ex 
tent  that  he  would  jump  from  imaginary  objects 
and  thus  stampede  his  brethren.  I  remember  it 
occurred  to  me,  then,  how  little  I  knew  about  cat 
tle,  and  that  my  wrangler  and  I  ought  to  exchange 
places.  Since  that  day  I  have  always  been  an  at 
tentive  listener  to  the  humblest  of  my  fellowmen 
when  interpreting  the  secrets  of  animal  life. 

Another  incident  occurred  on  this  trip  which 
showed  the  observation  and  insight  of  my  half-breed 
wrangler.  We  were  passing  through  some  cross- 
timbers  one  morning  in  northern  Texas,  the  remuda 
and  wagon  far  in  the  lead.  We  were  holding  the 


"THE  ANGEL"  115 

herd  as  compactly  as  possible  to  prevent  any  stray 
ing  of  cattle,  when  our  saddle  horses  were  noticed 
abandoned  in  thick  timber.  It  was  impossible  to 
leave  the  herd  at  the  time,  but  on  reaching  the 
nearest  opening,  about  two  miles  ahead,  I  turned 
and  galloped  back  for  fear  of  losing  horses.  I 
counted  the  remuda  and  found  them  all  there,  but 
the  wrangler  was  missing.  Thoughts  of  desertion 
flashed  through  my  mind,  the  situation  was  unex- 
plainable,  and  after  calling,  shooting,  and  circling 
around  for  over  an  hour,  I  took  the  remuda  in  hand 
and  started  after  the  herd,  mentally  preparing  a 
lecture  in  case  my  wrangler  returned.  While  noon 
ing  that  day  some  six  or  seven  miles  distant,  the 
half-breed  jauntily  rode  into  camp,  leading  a  fine 
horse,  saddled  and  bridled,  with  a  man's  coat  tied 
to  the  cantle-strings.  He  explained  to  us  that  he 
had  noticed  the  trail  of  a  horse  crossing  our  course 
at  right  angles.  The  freshness  of  the  sign  attracted 
his  attention,  and  trailing  it  a  short  distance  in 
the  dewy  morning  he  had  noticed  that  something 
attached  to  the  animal  was  trailing.  A  closer  ex 
amination  was  made,  and  he  decided  that  it  was  a 
bridle  rein  and  not  a  rope  that  was  attached  to  the 
wandering  horse.  From  the  freshness  of  the  trail, 
he  felt  positive  that  he  would  overtake  the  animal 
shortly,  but  after  finding  him  some  difficulty  was 
encountered  before  the  horse  would  allow  himself 
to  be  caught.  He  apologized  for  his  neglect  of  duty, 


116  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

considering  the  incident  as  nothing  unusual,  and 
I  had  not  the  heart  even  to  scold  him.  There  were 
letters  in  the  pocket  of  the  coat,  from  which  the 
owner  was  identified,  and  on  arriving  at  Abilene 
the  pleasure  was  mine  of  returning  the  horse  and 
accoutrements  and  receiving  a  twenty-dollar  gold 
piece  for  my  wrangler.  A  stampede  of  trail  cattle 
had  occurred  some  forty  miles  to  the  northwest  but 
a  few  nights  before  our  finding  the  horse,  during 
which  the  herd  ran  into  some  timber,  and  a  low- 
hanging  limb  unhorsed  the  foreman,  the  animal 
escaping  until  captured  by  my  man. 

On  approaching  Fort  Worth,  still  traveling 
slowly  on  account  of  the  lateness  of  the  spring,  I 
decided  to  pay  a  flying  visit  to  Palo  Pinto  County. 
It  was  fully  eighty  miles  from  the  Fort  across  to 
the  Edwards  ranch,  and  appointing  one  of  my  old 
men  as  segundo,  I  saddled  my  best  horse  and  set 
out  an  hour  before  sunset.  I  had  made  the  same 
ride  four  years  previously  on  coming  to  the  coun 
try,  a  cool  night  favored  my  mount,  and  at  daybreak 
I  struck  the  Brazos  Eiver  within  two  miles  of  the 
ranch.  An  eventful  day  followed ;  I  reeled  off  inno 
cent  white-faced  lies  by  the  yard,  in  explaining  the 
delightful  winter  I  had  spent  with  my  brother  in 
Missouri.  Fortunately  the  elder  Edwards  was  not 
driving  any  cattle  that  year,  and  George  was  absent 
buying  oxen  for  a  Fort  Griffin  freighter.  Good  re 
ports  of  my  new  ranch  awaited  me,  my  cattle  were 


"THE  ANGEL"  117 

increasing,  and  the  smile  of  prosperity  again  shed 
its  benediction  over  me.  No  one  had  located  any 
lands  near  my  little  ranch,  and  the  coveted  addition 
on  the  west  was  still  vacant  and  unoccupied.  The 
silent  monitor  within  my  breast  was  my  only  ac 
cuser,  but  as  I  rode  away  from  the  Edwards  ranch 
in  the  shade  of  evening,  even  it  was  silenced,  for  I 
held  the  promise  of  a  splendid  girl  to  become  my 
wife.  A  second  sleepless  night  passed  like  a  plea 
sant  dream,  and  early  the  next  morning,  firmly 
anchored  in  resolutions  that  no  vagabond  friends 
could  ever  shake,  I  overtook  my  herd. 

After  crossing  Red  River,  the  sweep  across  the 
Indian  country  was  but  a  repetition  of  other  years, 
with  its  varying  monotony.  Once  we  were  water- 
bound  for  three  days,  severe  drifts  from  storms  at 
night  were  experienced,  delaying  our  progress,  and 
we  did  not  reach  Abilene  until  June  15.  We  were 
aware,  however,  of  an  increased  drive  of  cattle  to 
the  north ;  evidences  were  to  be  seen  on  every  hand ; 
owners  were  hanging  around  the  different  fords 
and  junctions  of  trails,  inquiring  if  herds  in  such 
and  such  brands  had  been  seen  or  spoken.  While 
we  were  crossing  the  Nations,  men  were  daily  met 
hunting  for  lost  horses  or  inquiring  for  stampeded 
cattle,  while  the  regular  trails  were  being  cut  into 
established  thoroughfares  from  increasing  use.  Nei 
ther  of  the  other  Mabry  herds  had  reached  their 
destination  on  our  arrival,  though  Major  Seth  put 


118  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

in  an  appearance  within  a  week  and  reported  the 
other  two  about  one  hundred  miles  to  the  rear. 
Cattle  were  arriving  by  the  thousands,  buyers  from 
the  north,  east,  and  west  were  congregating,  and 
the  prospect  of  good  prices  was  flattering.  I  was 
fortunate  in  securing  my  old  camp-ground  north  of 
the  town  ;  a  dry  season  had  set  in  nearly  a  month 
before,  maturing  the  grass,  and  our  cattle  took  on 
flesh  rapidly.  Buyers  looked  them  over  daily,  our 
prices  being  firm.  Wintered  cattle  were  up  in 
the  pictures,  a  rate  war  was  on  between  all  rail 
road  lines  east  of  the  Mississippi  River,  cutting  to 
the  bone  to  secure  the  Western  live-stock  traffic. 
Three-year-old  steers  bought  the  fall  before  at 
twenty  dollars  and  wintered  on  the  Kansas  prairies 
were  netting  their  owners  as  high  as  sixty  dollars 
on  the  Chicago  market.  The  man  with  good  cattle 
for  sale  could  afford  to  be  firm. 

At  this  juncture  a  regrettable  incident  occurred, 
which,  however,  proved  a  boon  to  me.  Some  busy 
body  went  to  the  trouble  of  telling  Major  Mabry 
about  my  return  to  Abilene  the  fall  before  and  my 
subsequent  escapade  in  Texas,  embellishing  the 
details  and  even  intimating  that  I  had  squandered 
funds  not  my  own.  I  was  thirty  years  old  and  as 
touchy  as  gunpowder,  and  felt  the  injustice  of  the 
charge  like  a  knife-blade  in  my  heart.  There  was 
nothing  to  do  but  ask  for  my  release,  place  the 
facts  in  the  hands  of  my  employer,  and  court  a 


"THE  ANGEL"  119 

thorough  investigation.  I  had  always  entertained 
the  highest  regard  for  Major  Mabry,  and  before 
the  season  ended  I  was  fully  vindicated  and  we 
were  once  more  fast  friends. 

.In  the  mean  time  I  was  not  idle.  By  the  first  of 
July  it  was  known  that  three  hundred  thousand 
cattle  would  be  the  minimum  of  the  summer's  drive 
to  Abilene.  My  extensive  acquaintance  among 
buyers  made  my  services  of  value  to  new  drovers. 
A  commission  of  twenty-five  cents  a  head  was  of 
fered  me  for  effecting  sales.  The  first  week  after 
severing  my  connection  with  Major  Seth  my  earn 
ings  from  a  single  trade  amounted  to  seven  hun 
dred  and  fifty  dollars.  Thenceforth  I  was  launched 
on  a  business  of  my  own.  Fortune  smiled  on  me, 
acquaintances  nicknamed  me  "  The  Angel,"  and 
instead  of  my  foolishness  reflecting  on  me,  it  made 
me  a  host  of  friends.  Cowmen  insisted  on  my  sell 
ing  their  cattle,  shippers  consulted  me,  and  I  was 
constantly  in  demand  with  buyers,  who  wished  my 
opinion  on  young  steers  before  closing  trades.  I 
was  chosen  referee  in  a  dozen  disputes  in  classify 
ing  cattle,  my  decisions  always  giving  satisfaction. 
Frequently,  on  an  order,  I  turned  buyer.  Northern 
men  seemed  timid  in  relying  on  their  own  judg 
ment  of  Texas  cattle.  Often,  after  a  trade  was 
made,  the  buyer  paid  me  the  regular  commission 
for  cutting  and  receiving,  not  willing  to  risk  his 
judgment  on  range  cattle.  During  the  second  week 


120  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

in  August  I  sold  five  thousand  head  and  bought 
fifteen  hundred.  Every  man  who  had  purchased 
cattle  the  year  before  had  made  money  and  was 
back  in  the  market  for  more.  Prices  were  easily 
advanced  as  the  season  wore  on,  whole  herds  were 
taken  by  three  or  four  farmers  from  the  corn  re 
gions,  and  the  year  closed  with  a  flourish.  In  the 
space  of  four  months  I  was  instrumental  in  selling, 
buying,  cutting,  or  receiving  a  few  over  thirty  thou 
sand  head,  on  all  of  which  I  received  a  commission. 
I  established  a  camp  of  my  own  during  the  latter 
part  of  August.  In  order  to  avoid  night-herding 
his  cattle  the  summer  before,  some  one  had  built 
a  corral  about  ten  miles  northeast  of  Abilene.  It 
was  a  temporary  affair,  the  abrupt,  bluff  banks  of 
a  creek  making  a  perfect  horseshoe,  requiring  only 
four  hundred  feet  of  fence  across  the  neck  to  in 
close  a  corral  of  fully  eight  acres.  The  inclosure 
was  not  in  use,  so  I  hired  three  men  and  took 
possession  of  it  for  the  time  being.  I  had  noticed 
in  previous  years  that  when  a  drover  had  sold  all 
his  herd  but  a  remnant,  he  usually  sacrificed  his 
culls  in  order  to  reduce  the  expense  of  an  outfit 
and  return  home.  I  had  an  idea  that  there  was 
money  in  buying  up  these  remnants  and  doing  a 
small  jobbing  business.  Frequently  I  had  as  many 
as  seven  hundred  cull  cattle  on  hand.  Besides,  I 
was  constantly  buying  and  selling  whole  remudas 
of  saddle  horses.  So  when  a  drover  had  sold  all 


"THE  ANGEL"  121 

but  a  few  hundred  cattle  he  would  came  to  me,  and 
I  would  afford  him  the  relief  he  wanted.  Cripples 
and  sore-footed  animals  were  usually  thrown  in  for 
good  measure,  or  accepted  at  the  price  of  their 
hides.  Some  buyers  demanded  quality  and  some 
cared  only  for  numbers.  I  remember  effecting  a 
sale  of  one  hundred  culls  to  a  settler,  southeast 
on  the  Smoky  River,  at  seven  dollars  a  head.  The 
terms  were  that  I  was  to  cut  out  the  cattle,  and  as 
many  were  cripples  and  cost  me  little  or  nothing, 
they  afforded  a  nice  profit  besides  cleaning  up  my 
herd.  When  selling  my  own,  I  always  priced  a 
choice  of  my  cattle  at  a  reasonable  figure,  or  offered 
to  cull  out  the  same  number  at  half  the  price.  By 
this  method  my  herd  was  kept  trimmed  from  both 
ends  and  the  happy  medium  preserved. 

I  love  to  think  of  those  good  old  days.  Without 
either  foresight  or  effort  I  made  all  kinds  of  money 
during  the  summer  of  1870.  Our  best  patrons  that 
fall  were  small  ranchmen  from  Kansas  and  Ne 
braska,  every  one  of  whom  had  coined  money  on 
their  purchases  of  the  summer  before.  One  hundred 
per  cent  for  wintering  a  steer  and  carrying  him  less 
than  a  year  had  brought  every  cattleman  and  his 
cousin  back  to  Abilene  to  duplicate  their  former 
ventures.  The  little  ranchman  who  bought  five  hun 
dred  steers  in  the  fall  of  1869  was  in  the  market 
the  present  summer  for  a  thousand  head.  Demand 
always  seemed  to  meet  supply  a  little  over  half-way. 


122  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

The  market  closed  firm,  with  every  hoof  taken,  and 
at  prices  that  were  entirely  satisfactory  to  drovers. 
It  would  seem  an  impossibility  were  I  to  admit  my 
profits  for  that  year,  yet  at  the  close  of  the  season 
I  started  overland  to  Texas  with  fifty  choice  saddle 
horses  and  a  snug  bank  account.  Surely  those  were 
the  golden  days  of  the  old  West. 

My  last  act  before  leaving  Abilene  that  fall  was 
to  meet  my  enemy  and  force  a  personal  settlement. 
Major  Mabry  washed  his  hands  by  firmly  refusing 
to  name  my  accuser,  but  from  other  sources  I  traced 
my  defamer  to  a  liveryman  of  the  town.  The  fall 
before,  on  four  horses  and  saddles,  I  paid  a  lien,  in 
the  form  of  a  feed  bill,  of  one  hundred  and  twenty 
dollars  for  my  stranded  friends.  The  following  day 
the  same  man  presented  me  another  bill  for  nearly 
an  equal  amount,  claiming  it  had  been  assigned  to 
him  in  a  settlement  with  other  parties.  I  inves 
tigated  the  matter,  found  it  to  be  a  disputed  gam 
bling  account,  and  refused  payment.  An  attempt 
was  made,  only  for  a  moment,  to  hold  the  horses, 
resulting  in  my  incurring  the  stableman's  displea 
sure.  The  outcome  was  that  on  our  return  the  next 
spring  our  patronage  went  to  another  bran,  and  the 
story,  born  in  malice  and  falsehood,  was  started 
between  employer  and  employee.  I  had  made  ar 
rangements  to  return  to  Texas  with  the  last  one 
of  Major  Mabry's  outfits,  and  the  wagon  and  remuda 
had  already  started,  when  I  located  my  traducer  in 


"THE   ANGEL"  123 

a  well-known  saloon.  I  invited  him  to  a  seat  at  a 
table,  determined  to  bring  matters  to  an  issue.  He 
reluctantly  complied,  when  I  branded  him  with 
every  vile  epithet  that  my  tongue  could  command, 
concluding  by  arraigning  him  as  a  coward.  I  was 
hungering  for  him  to  show  some  resistance,  expect 
ing  to  kill  him,  and  when  he  refused  to  notice  my 
insults,  I  called  the  barkeeper  and  asked  for  two 
glasses  of  whiskey  and  a  pair  of  six-shooters.  Not  a 
word  passed  between  us  until  the  bar-tender  brought 
the  drinks  and  guns  on  a  tray.  "  Now  take  your 
choice,"  said  I.  He  replied,  "  I  believe  a  little  whis 
key  will  do  me  good." 


CHAPTER  VIII 
THE  "LAZYL" 

THE  homeward  trip  was  a  picnic.  Counting  mine, 
we  had  one  hundred  and  fifty  saddle  horses.  All 
surplus  men  in  the  employ  of  Major  Mabry  had 
been  previously  sent  home  until  there  remained  at 
the  close  of  the  season  only  the  drover,  seven  men, 
and  myself.  We  averaged  forty  miles  a  day  return 
ing,  sweeping  down  the  plains  like  a  north  wind 
until  Red  River  Station  was  reached.  There  our 
ways  parted,  and  cutting  separate  my  horses,  we 
bade  each  other  farewell,  the  main  outfit  head 
ing  for  Fort  Worth,  while  I  bore  to  the  west 
ward  for  Palo  Pinto.  Major  Seth  was  anxious  to 
secure  my  services  for  another  year,  but  I  made  no 
definite  promises.  We  parted  the  best  of  friends. 
There  were  scattering  ranches  on  my  route,  but 
driving  fifty  loose  horses  made  traveling  slow,  and 
it  was  nearly  a  week  before  I  reached  the  Edwards 
ranch. 

The  branding  season  was  nearly  over.  After  a 
few  days'  rest,  an  outfit  of  men  was  secured,  and 
we  started  for  my  little  ranch  on  the  Clear  Fork. 
Word  was  sent  to  the  county  seat,  appointing  a 


THE  "LAZY  L"  125 

date  with  the  surveyor,  and  on  arriving  at  the  new 
ranch  I  found  that  the  corrals  had  been  in  active 
use  by  branding  parties.  We  were  soon  in  the 
thick  of  the  fray,  easily  holding  our  own,  branding 
every  maverick  on  the  range  as  well  as  catching 
wild  cattle.  My  weakness  for  a  good  horse  was  the 
secret  of  much  of  my  success  in  ranching  during  the 
early  days,  for  with  a  remuda  of  seventy  picked 
horses  it  was  impossible  for  any  unowned  animal 
to  escape  us.  Our  drag-net  scoured  the  hills  and 
valleys,  and  before  the  arrival  of  the  surveyor  we 
had  run  the  "  44  "  on  over  five  hundred  calves, 
mavericks,  and  wild  cattle.  Different  outfits  came 
down  the  Brazos  and  passed  up  the  Clear  Fork, 
always  using  my  corrals  when  working  in  the  latter 
valley.  We  usually  joined  in  with  these  cow-hunt 
ing  parties,  extending  to  them  every  possible  cour 
tesy,  and  in  return  many  a  thrifty  yearling  was 
added  to  my  brand.  Except  some  wild-cattle  hunt 
ing  which  we  had  in  view,  every  hoof  was  branded 
up  by  the  time  the  surveyor  arrived  at  the  ranch. 

The  locating  of  twenty  sections  of  land  was  an 
easy  matter.  We  had  established  corners  from 
which  to  work,  and  commencing  on  the  west  end 
of  my  original  location,  we  ran  off  an  area  of  coun 
try,  four  miles  west  by  five  south.  New  outside 
corners  were  established  with  buried  charcoal  and 
stakes,  while  the  inner  ones  were  indicated  by  half- 
buried  rock,  nothing  divisional  being  done  except 


126  KEED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

to  locate  the  land  in  sections.  It  was  a  beautiful 
tract,  embracing  a  large  bend  of  the  Clear  Fork, 
heavily  timbered  in  several  places,  the  soil  being  of 
a  rich,  sandy  loam  and  covered  with  grass.  I  was 
proud  of  my  landed  interest,  though  small  compared 
to  modern  ranches ;  and  after  the  surveying  ended, 
we  spent  a  few  weeks  hunting  out  several  rendez 
vous  of  wild  cattle  before  returning  to  the  Edwards 
ranch. 

I  married  during  the  holidays.  The  new  ranch 
was  abandoned  during  the  winter  months,  as  the 
cattle  readily  cared  for  themselves,  requiring  no 
attention.  I  now  had  a  good  working  capital,  and 
having  established  myself  by  marriage  into  a  re 
spectable  family  of  the  country,  I  found  several 
avenues  open  before  me.  Among  the  different  open 
ings  for  attractive  investment  was  a  brand  of  cattle 
belonging  to  an  estate  south  in  Comanche  County. 
If  the  cattle  were  as  good  as  represented  they  were 
certainly  a  bargain,  as  the  brand  was  offered  straight 
through  at  four  dollars  and  a  half  a  head.  It  was 
represented  that  nothing  had  been  sold  from  the 
brand  in  a  number  of  years,  the  estate  was  insol 
vent,  and  the  trustee  was  anxious  to  sell  the  entire 
stock  outright.  I  was  impressed  with  the  opportunity, 
and  early  in  the  winter  George  Edwards  and  I  rode 
down  to  look  the  situation  over.  By  riding  around 
the  range  a  few  days  we  were  able  to  get  a  good 
idea  of  the  stock,  and  on  inquiry  among  neighbors 


THE  "LAZY  L"  127 

and  men  familiar  with  the  brand,  I  was  satisfied 
that  the  cattle  were  a  bargain.  A  lawyer  at  the 
county  seat  was  the  trustee,  and  on  opening  nego 
tiations  with  him  it  was  readily  to  be  seen  that  all 
he  knew  about  the  stock  was  that  shown  by  the 
books  and  accounts.  According  to  the  branding 
for  the  past  few  years,  it  would  indicate  a  brand  of 
five  or  six  thousand  cattle.  The  only  trouble  in 
trading  was  to  arrange  the  terms,  my  offer  being 
half  cash  and  the  balance  in  six  months,  the  cattle 
to  be  gathered  early  the  coming  spring.  A  bewil 
dering  list  of  references  was  given  and  we  returned 
home.  Within  a  fortnight  a  letter  came  from  the 
trustee,  accepting  my  offer  and  asking  me  to  set 
a  date  for  the  gathering.  I  felt  positive  that  the 
brand  ought  to  run  forty  per  cent  steer  cattle,  and 
unless  there  was  some  deception,  there  would  be  in 
the  neighborhood  of  two  thousand  head  fit  for  the 
trail.  I  at  once  bought  thirty  more  saddle  horses, 
outfitted  a  wagon  with  oxen  to  draw  it,  besides 
hiring  fifteen  cow-hands.  Early  in  March  we  started 
for  Comanche  County,  having  in  the  mean  time 
made  arrangements  with  the  elder  Edwards  to  sup 
ply  one  thousand  head  of  trail  cattle,  intended  for 
the  Kansas  market. 

An  early  spring  favored  the  work.  By  the  10th 
of  the  month  we  were  actively  engaged  in  gathering 
the  stock.  It  was  understood  that  we  were  to  have 
the  assistance  of  the  ranch  outfit  in  holding  the 


128  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

cattle,  but  as  they  numbered  only  half  a  dozen  and 
were  miserably  mounted,  they  were  of  little  use  ex 
cept  as  herders.  All  the  neighboring  ranches  gave 
us  round-ups,  and  by  the  time  we  reached  the  home 
range  of  the  brand  I  was  beginning  to  get  uneasy 
on  account  of  the  numbers  under  herd.  My  capital 
was  limited,  and  if  we  gathered  six  thousand  head 
it  would  absorb  my  money.  I  needed  a  little  for 
expenses  on  the  trail,  and  too  many  cattle  would  be 
embarrassing.  There  was  no  intention  on  my  part 
to  act  dishonestly  in  the  premises,  even  if  we  did 
drop  out  any  number  of  yearlings  during  the  last 
few  days  of  the  gathering.  It  was  absolutely  neces 
sary  to  hold  the  numbers  down  to  five  thousand 
head,  or  as  near  that  number  as  possible,  and  by 
keeping  the  ranch  outfit  on  herd  and  my  men  out 
on  round-ups,  it  was  managed  quietly,  though  we 
let  no  steer  cattle  two  years  old  or  over  escape. 
When  the  gathering  was  finished,  to  the  surprise 
of  every  one  the  herd  counted  out  fifty-six  hundred 
and  odd  cattle.  But  the  numbers  were  still  within 
the  limits  of  my  capital,  and  at  the  final  settlement 
I  asked  the  privilege  of  cutting  out  and  leaving  on 
the  range  one  hundred  head  of  weak,  thin  stock 
and  cows  heavy  in  calf.  I  offered  to  tally-mark  and 
send  after  them  during  the  fall  branding,  when  the 
trustee  begged  me  to  make  him  an  offer  on  any 
remnant  of  cattle,  making  me  full  owner  of  the 
brand.  I  hesitated  to  involve  myself  deeper  in  debt, 


THE  "LAZY  L"  129 

but  when  he  finally  offered  me  the  "  Lazy  L " 
brand  outright  for  the  sum  of  one  thousand  dollars, 
and  on  a  credit,  I  never  stuttered  in  accepting  his 
proposal. 

I  culled  back  one  hundred  before  starting,  there 
being  no  occasion  now  to  tally-mark,  as  I  was  in 
full  possession  of  the  brand.  This  amount  of  cat 
tle  in  one  herd  was  unwieldy  to  handle.  The  first 
day's  drive  we  scarcely  made  ten  miles,  it  being 
nearly  impossible  to  water  such  an  unmanageable 
body  of  animals,  even  from  a  running  stream.  The 
second  noon  we  cut  separate  all  the  steers  two  years 
old  and  upward,  finding  a  few  under  twenty-three 
hundred  in  the  latter  class.  This  left  three  thousand 
and  odd  hundred  in  the  mixed  herd,  running  from 
yearlings  to  old  range  bulls.  A  few  extra  men  were 
secured,  and  some  progress  was  made  for  the  next 
few  days,  the  steers  keeping  well  in  the  lead,  the 
two  herds  using  the  same  wagon,  and  camping 
within  half  a  mile  of  each  other  at  night.  It  was 
fully  ninety  miles  to  the  Edwards  ranch ;  and  when 
about  two  thirds  the  distance  was  covered,  a  mes 
senger  met  us  and  reported  the  home  cattle  under 
herd  and  ready  to  start.  It  still  lacked  two  days 
of  the  appointed  time  for  our  return,  but  rather 
than  disappoint  any  one,  I  took  seven  men  and 
sixty  horses  with  the  lead  herd  and  started  in  to  the 
ranch,  leaving  the  mixed  cattle  to  follow  with  the 
wagon.  We  took  a  day's  rations  on  a  pack  horse, 


130  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

touched  at  a  ranch,  and  on  the  second  evening 
reached  home.  My  contingent  to  the  trail  herd 
would  have  classified  approximately  seven  hundred 
twos,  six  hundred  threes,  and  one  thousand  four 
years  old  or  over. 

The  next  morning  the  herd  started  up  the  trail 
under  George  Edwards  as  foreman.  It  numbered 
a  few  over  thirty-three  hundred  head  and  had  four 
teen  men,  all  told,  and  ninety-odd  horses,  with  four 
good  mules  to  a  new  wagon.  I  promised  to  over 
take  them  within  a  week,  and  the  same  evening  re 
joined  the  mixed  herd  some  ten  miles  back  down 
the  country.  Calves  were  dropping  at  an  alarming 
rate,  fully  twenty  of  them  were  in  the  wagon,  their 
advent  delaying  the  progress  of  the  herd.  By  dint 
of  great  exertion  we  managed  to  reach  the  ranch 
the  next  evening,  where  we  lay  over  a  day  and 
rigged  up  a  second  wagon,  purposely  for  calves.  It 
was  the  intention  to  send  the  stock  cattle  to  my 
new  ranch  on  the  Clear  Fork,  and  releasing  all  but 
four  men,  the  idle  help  about  the  home  ranch  were 
substituted.  In  moving  cattle  from  one  range  to 
another,  it  should  always  be  done  with  the  coming 
of  grass,  as  it  gives  them  a  full  summer  to  locate 
and  become  attached  to  their  new  range.  When 
possible,  the  coming  calf  crop  should  be  born  where 
the  mothers  are  to  be  located,  as  it  strengthens  the 
ties  between  an  animal  and  its  range  by  making 
sacred  the  birthplace  of  its  young.  From  instinc- 


THE  "LAZY  L"  131 

tive  warnings  of  maternity,  cows  will  frequently 
return  to  the  same  retreat  annually  to  give  birth 
to  their  calves. 

It  was  about  fifty  miles  between  the  home  and 
the  new  ranch.  As  it  was  important  to  get  the  cat 
tle  located  as  soon  as  possible,  they  were  accordingly 
started  with  but  the  loss  of  a  single  day.  Two 
wagons  accompanied  them,  every  calf  was  saved, 
and  by  nursing  the  herd  early  and  late  we  man 
aged  to  average  ten  miles  between  sunrise  and  sun 
set.  The  elder  Edwards,  anxious  to  see  the  new 
ranch,  accompanied  us,  his  patience  with  a  cow 
being  something  remarkable.  When  we  lacked 
but  a  day's  drive  of  the  Clear  Fork  it  was  consid 
ered  advisable  for  me  to  return.  Once  the  cattle 
reached  the  new  range,  four  men  would  loose- 
herd  them  for  a  month,  after  which  they  would 
continue  to  ride  the  range  and  turn  back  all  strag 
glers.  The  veteran  cowman  assumed  control,  and 
I  returned  to  the  home  ranch,  where  a  horse  had 
been  left  on  which  to  overtake  the  trail  herd.  My 
wife  caught  several  glimpses  of  me  that  spring ; 
with  stocking  a  new  ranch  and  starting  a  herd  on 
the  trail  I  was  as  busy  as  the  proverbial  cranberry- 
merchant.  Where  a  year  before  I  was  moneyless, 
now  my  obligations  were  accepted  for  nearly  four 
teen  thousand  dollars. 

I  overtook  the  herd  within  one  day's  drive  of 
Red  River.    Everything  was  moving  nicely,  the  cat- 


132  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

tie  were  well  trail-broken,  not  a  run  had  occurred, 
and  all  was  serene  and  lovely.  We  crossed  into  the 
Nations  at  the  regular  ford,  nothing  of  importance 
occurring  until  we  reached  the  Washita  Kiver. 
The  Indians  had  been  bothering  us  more  or  less, 
but  we  brushed  them  aside  or  appeased  their  beg 
ging  with  a  stray  beef.  At  the  crossing  of  the 
Washita  quite  an  encampment  had  congregated, 
demanding  six  cattle  and  threatening  to  dispute 
our  entrance  to  the  ford.  Several  of  the  boys  with 
us  pretended  to  understand  the  sign  language,  and 
this  resulted  in  an  animosity  being  engendered  be 
tween  two  of  the  outfit  over  interpreting  a  sign 
made  by  a  chief.  After  we  had  given  the  Indians 
two  strays,  quite  a  band  of  bucks  gathered  on  foot 
at  the  crossing,  refusing  to  let  us  pass  until  their 
demand  had  been  fulfilled.  We  had  a  few  carbines, 
every  lad  had  a  six-shooter  or  two,  and,  summoning 
every  mounted  man,  we  rode  up  to  the  ford.  The 
braves  outnumbered  us  about  three  to  one,  and  it 
was  easy  to  be  seen  that  they  had  bows  and  arrows 
concealed  under  their  blankets.  I  was  determined 
to  give  up  no  more  cattle,  and  in  the  powwow  that 
followed  the  chief  of  the  band  became  very  defiant. 
I  accused  him  and  his  band  of  being  armed,  and 
when  he  denied  it  one  of  the  boys  jumped  a  horse 
against  the  chief,  knocking  him  down.  In  the 
melee,  the  leader's  blanket  was  thrown  from  him, 
exposing  a  strung  bow  and  quiver  of  arrows,  and 


THE  "LAZY   L"  133 

at  the  same  instant  every  man  brought  his  carbine 
or  six-shooter  to  bear  on  the  astonished  braves. 
Not  a  shot  was  fired,  nor  was  there  any  further 
resistance  offered  on  the  part  of  the  Indians ; 
but  as  they  turned  to  leave  the  humiliated  chief 
pointed  to  the  sun  and  made  a  circle  around  his 
head  as  if  to  indicate  a  threat  of  scalping. 

It  was  in  interpreting  this  latter  sign  that  the 
dispute  arose  between  two  of  the  outfit.  One  of  the 
boys  contended  that  I  was  to  be  scalped  before  the 
sun  set,  while  the  other  interpreted  the  threat  that 
we  would  all  be  scalped  before  the  sun  rojse  again. 
Neither  version  troubled  me,  but  the  two  fellows 
quarreled  over  the  matter  while  returning  to  the 
herd,  until  the  lie  was  passed  and  their  six-shooters 
began  talking.  Fortunately  they  were  both  mounted 
on  horses  that  were  gun-shy,  and  with  the  rearing 
and  plunging  the  shots  went  wild.  Every  man  in 
the  outfit  interfered,  the  two  fellows  were  disarmed, 
and  we  started  on  with  the  cattle.  No  interference 
was  offered  by  the  Indians  at  the  ford,  the  guards 
were  doubled  that  night,  and  the  incident  was  for 
gotten  within  a  week.  I  simply  mention  this  to  give 
some  idea  of  the  men  of  that  day,  willing  to  back 
their  opinions,  even  on  trivial  matters,  with  their 
lives.  "  I  'm  the  quickest  man  on  the  trigger  that 
ever  came  over  the  trail,"  said  a  cowpuncher  to 
me  one  night  in  a  saloon  in  Abilene.  "  You  're 
a  blankety  blank  liar,"  said  a  quiet  little  man,  a 


134  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

perfect  stranger  to  both  of  us,  not  even  casting  a 
glance  our  way.  I  wrested  a  six-shooter  from  the 
hand  of  my  acquaintance  and  hustled  him  out  of  the 
house,  getting  roundly  cursed  for  my  interference, 
though  no  doubt  I  saved  human  life. 

On  reaching  Stone's  Store,  on  the  Kansas  line,  I 
left  the  herd  to  follow,  and  arrived  at  Abilene  in 
two  days  and  a  half.    Only  some  twenty-five  herds 
were  ahead  of  ours,  though  I  must  have  passed  a 
dozen  or  more  in  my  brief  ride,  staying  over  night 
with  them  and  scarcely  ever  missing  a  meal  on  the 
road.    My  motive  in  reaching  Abilene  in  advance 
of  our  cattle  was  to  get  in  touch  with  the  market, 
secure  my  trading-corrals  again,  and  perfect  my 
arrangements  to  do  a  commission  business.    But  on 
arriving,  instead  of  having  the  field  to  myself,  I 
found  the  old  corrals  occupied  by  a  trio  of  jobbers, 
while  two  new  ones  had  been  built  within  ten  miles 
of  town,  and  half  a  dozen  firms  were  offering  their 
services  as  salesmen.    There  was  a  lack  of  actual 
buyers,  at  least  among  my  acquaintances,  and  the 
railroads  had  adjusted  their  rates,  while  a  largely 
increased  drive  was  predicted.    The  spring  had  been 
a  wet  one,  the  grass  was  washy  and  devoid  of  nutri 
ment,  and  there  was  nothing  in  the  outlook  of  an 
encouraging  nature.    Yet  the  majority  of  the  dro 
vers  were  very  optimistic  of  the  future,  freely  pre 
dicting  better  prices  than  ever  before,  while  many 
declared  their  intention  of  wintering  in  case  their 


THE  "LAZY   L"  135 

hopes  were  not  realized.  By  the  time  our  herd 
arrived,  I  had  grown  timid  of  the  market  in  general 
and  was  willing  to  sell  out  and  go  home.  I  make  no 
pretension  to  having  any  extra  foresight,  probably 
it  was  my  outstanding  obligations  in  Texas  that 
fostered  my  anxiety,  but  I  was  prepared  to  sell  to 
the  first  man  who  talked  business. 

Our  cattle  arrived  in  good  condition.  The  weather 
continued  wet  and  stormy,  the  rank  grass  harbored 
myriads  of  flies  and  mosquitoes,  and  the  through 
cattle  failed  to  take  on  flesh  as  in  former  years. 
Kival  towns  were  competing  for  the  trail  business, 
wintered  cattle  were  lower,  and  a  perfect  chaos 
existed  as  to  future  prices,  drovers  bolstering  and 
pretended  buyers  depressing  them.  Within  a  week 
after  their  arrival  I  sold  fifteen  hundred  of  our 
heaviest  beeves  to  an  army  contractor  from  Fort 
Russell  in  Dakota.  He  had  brought  his  own  out 
fit  down  to  receive  the  cattle,  and  as  his  contract 
called  for  a  million  and  a  half  pounds  on  foot,  I 
assisted  him  in  buying  sixteen  hundred  more.  The 
contractor  was  a  shrewd  Yankee,  and  although  I 
admitted  having  served  in  the  Confederate  army, 
he  offered  to  form  a  partnership  with  me  for  sup 
plying  beef  to  the  army  posts  along  the  upper 
Missouri  River.  He  gave  me  an  insight  into  the 
profits  in  that  particular  trade,  and  even  urged 
the  partnership,  but  while  the  opportunity  was  a 
golden  one,  I  was  distrustful  of  a  Northern  man 


136  REED   ANTNONY,  COWMAN 

and  declined  the  alliance.  Within  a  year  I  regret 
ted  not  forming  the  partnership,  as  the  government 
was  a  stable  patron,  and  my  adopted  State  had  any 
quantity  of  beef  cattle. 

My  brother  paid  me  a  visit  during  the  latter 
part  of  June.  We  had  not  seen  each  other  in  five 
years,  during  which  time  he  had  developed  into  a 
prosperous  stockman,  feeding  cattle  every  winter 
on  his  Missouri  farm.  He  was  anxious  to  interest 
me  in  corn-feeding  steers,  but  I  had  my  hands  full 
at  home,  and  within  a  week  he  went  on  west  and 
bought  two  hundred  Colorado  natives,  shipping  them 
home  to  feed  the  coming  winter.  Meanwhile  a  per 
fect  glut  of  cattle  was  arriving  at  Abilene,  fully 
six  hundred  thousand  having  registered  at  Stone's 
Store  on  passing  into  Kansas,  yet  prices  remained 
firm,  considering  the  condition  of  the  stock.  Many 
drovers  halted  only  a  day  or  two,  and  turned  west 
ward  looking  for  ranges  on  which  to  winter  their 
herds.  Barely  half  the  arrivals  were  even  offered, 
which  afforded  fair  prices  to  those  who  wished  to 
sell.  Before  the  middle  of  July  the  last  of  ours  was 
closed  out  at  satisfactory  prices,  and  the  next  day 
the  outfit  started  home,  leaving  me  behind.  I  was 
anxious  to  secure  an  extra  remuda  of  horses,  and, 
finding  no  opposition  in  that  particular  field,  had 
traded  extensively  in  saddle  stock  ever  since  my  ar 
rival  at  Abilene.  Gentle  horses  were  in  good  demand 
among  shippers  and  ranchmen,  and  during  my  brief 


THE  "LAZY  L"  137 

stay  I  must  have  handled  a  thousand  head,  buying 
whole  remudas  and  retailing  in  quantities  to  suit, 
not  failing  to  keep  the  choice  ones  for  my  own  use. 
Within  two  weeks  after  George  Edwards  started 
home,  I  closed  up  my  business,  fell  in  with  a  return 
ing  outfit,  and  started  back  with  one  hundred  and 
ten  picked  saddle  horses.  After  crossing  Ked  River, 
I  hired  a  boy  to  assist  me  in  driving  the  remuda, 
and  I  reached  home  only  ten  days  behind  the  others. 
I  was  now  the  proud  possessor  of  over  two 
hundred  saddle  horses  which  had  actually  cost  me 
nothing.  To  use  a  borrowed  term,  they  were  the 
"  velvet  "  of  my  trading  operations.  I  hardly  feel 
able  to  convey  an  idea  of  the  important  role  that 
the  horses  play  in  the  operations  of  a  cowman. 
Whether  on  the  trail  or  on  the  ranch,  there  is  a 
complete  helplessness  when  the  men  are  not  pro 
perly  mounted  and  able  to  cope  with  any  emergency 
that  may  arise.  On  the  contrary,  and  especially  in 
trail  work,  when  men  are  well  mounted,  there  is 
no  excuse  for  not  riding  in  the  lead  of  any  stam 
pede,  drifting  with  the  herd  on  the  stormiest  night, 
or  trailing  lost  cattle  until  overtaken.  Owing  to 
the  nature  of  the  occupation,  a  man  may  be  fre 
quently  wet,  cold,  and  hungry,  and  entitled  to  little 
sympathy ;  but  once  he  feels  that  he  is  no  longer 
mounted,  his  grievance  becomes  a  real  one.  The 
cow-horse  subsisted  on  the  range,  and  if  ever  used 
to  exhaustion  was  worthless  for  weeks  afterward. 


138  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

Hence  the  value  of  a  good  mount  in  numbers,  and 
the  importance  of  frequent  changes  when  the  duties 
were  arduous.  The  importance  of  good  horses  was 
first  impressed  on  me  during  my  trips  to  Fort 
Sumner,  and  I  then  resolved  that  if  fortune  ever 
favored  me  to  reach  the  prominence  of  a  cowman, 
the  saddle  stock  would  have  my  first  consideration. 
On  my  return  it  was  too  early  for  the  fall  brand 
ing.  I  made  a  trip  out  to  the  new  ranch,  taking 
along  ample  winter  supplies,  two  extra  lads,  and 
the  old  remuda  of  sixty  horses.  The  men  had  lo 
cated  the  new  cattle  fairly  well,  the  calf  crop  was 
abundant,  and  after  spending  a  week  I  returned 
home.  I  had  previously  settled  my  indebtedness  in 
Comanche  County  by  remittances  from  Abilene, 
and  early  in  the  fall  I  made  up  an  outfit  to  go 
down  and  gather  the  remnant  of  "  Lazy  L  "  cattle. 
Taking  along  the  entire  new  remuda,  we  dropped 
down  in  advance  of  the  branding  season,  visited 
among  the  neighboring  ranches,  and  offered  a  dol 
lar  a  head  for  solitary  animals  that  had  drifted  any 
great  distance  from  the  range  of  the  brand.  A 
camp  was  established  at  some  corrals  on  the  origi 
nal  range,  extra  men  were  employed  with  the  open 
ing  of  the  branding  season,  and  after  twenty  days' 
constant  riding  we  started  home  with  a  few  over 
nine  hundred  head,  not  counting  two  hundred  and 
odd  calves.  Little  wonder  the  trustee  threatened 
to  sue  me ;  but  then  it  was  his  own  proposition. 


THE  "LAZY   L"  139 

On  arriving  at  the  Edwards  ranch,  we  halted  a 
few  days  in  order  to  gather  the  fruits  of  my  first 
mavericking.  The  fall  work  was  nearly  finished, 
and  having  previously  made  arrangements  to  put 
my  brand  under  herd,  we  received  two  hundred 
and  fifty  more,  with  seventy-five  thrifty  calves,  be 
fore  proceeding  on  to  the  new  ranch  on  the  Clear 
Fork.  On  arriving  there  we  branded  the  calves, 
put  the  two  brands  under  herd,  corralling  them  at 
night  and  familiarizing  them  with  their  new  home, 
and  turning  them  loose  at  the  end  of  two  weeks. 
Moving  cattle  in  the  fall  was  contrary  to  the  best 
results,  but  it  was  an  idle  time,  and  they  were  all 
young  stuff  and  easily  located.  During  the  interim 
of  loose-herding  this  second  contingent  of  stock 
cattle,  the  branding  had  been  finished  on  the  ranch, 
and  I  was  able  to  take  an  account  of  my  year's 
work.  The  "  Lazy  L "  was  continued,  and  from 
that  brand  alone  there  was  an  increase  of  over 
seventeen  hundred  calves.  With  all  the  expenses 
of  the  trail  deducted,  the  steer  cattle  alone  had 
paid  for  the  entire  brand,  besides  adding  over  five 
thousand  dollars  to  my  cash  capital.  Who  will 
gainsay  my  statement  that  Texas  was  a  good  coun 
try  in  the  year  1871  ? 


CHAPTER  IX 
THE  SCHOOL  OF  EXPERIENCE 

SUCCESS  had  made  me  daring.  And  yet  I  must 
have  been  wandering  aimlessly,  for  had  my  ambi 
tion  been  well  directed,  there  is  no  telling  to  what 
extent  I  might  have  amassed  a  fortune.  Opportu 
nity  was  knocking  at  my  gate,  a  giant  young  com 
monwealth  was  struggling  in  the  throes  of  political 
revolution,  while  I  wandered  through  it  all  like  a 
blind  man  led  by  a  child.  Precedent  was  of  little 
value,  as  present  environment  controlled  my  actions. 
The  best  people  in  Texas  were  doubtful  of  ever 
ridding  themselves  of  the  baneful  incubus  of  Re 
construction.  Men  on  whose  judgment  I  relied 
laughed  at  me  for  acquiring  more  land  than  a  mere 
homestead.  Stock  cattle  were  in  such  disrepute  that 
they  had  no  cash  value.  Many  a  section  of  deeded 
land  changed  owners  for  a  milk  cow,  while  sur 
veyors  would  no  longer  locate  new  lands  for  the 
customary  third,  but  insisted  on  a  half  interest. 
Ranchmen  were  so  indifferent  that  many  never 
went  off  their  home  range  in  branding  the  calf 
crop,  not  considering  a  ten  or  twenty  per  cent  loss 
of  any  importance.  Yet  through  it  all  —  from  my 


THE   SCHOOL   OF   EXPERIENCE       141 

Virginia  rearing  —  there  lurked  a  wavering  belief 
that  some  day,  in  some  manner,  these  lands  and 
cattle  would  have  a  value.  But  my  faith  was  nei 
ther  the  bold  nor  the  assertive  kind,  and  I  drifted 
along,  clinging  to  any  passing  straw  of  opinion. 

The  Indians  were  still  giving  trouble  along  the 
Texas  frontier.  A  line  of  government  posts,  extend 
ing  from  Ked  River  on  the  north  to  the  Rio  Grande 
on  the  south,  made  a  pretense  of  holding  the  Co- 
manches  and  their  allies  in  check,  while  this  arm 
of  the  service  was  ably  seconded  by  the  Texas 
Rangers.  Yet  in  spite  of  all  precaution,  the  red 
skins  raided  the  settlements  at  their  pleasure,  steal 
ing  horses  and  adding  rapine  and  murder  to  their 
category  of  crimes.  Hence  for  a  number  of  years 
after  my  marriage  we  lived  at  the  Edwards  ranch 
as  a  matter  of  precaution  against  Indian  raids.  I 
was  absent  from  home  so  much  that  this  arrange 
ment  suited  me,  and  as  the  new  ranch  was  distant 
but  a  day's  ride,  any  inconvenience  was  more  than 
recompensed  in  security.  It  was  my  intention  to 
follow  the  trail  and  trading,  at  the  same  time  run 
ning  a  ranch  where  anything  unfit  for  market  might 
be  sent  to  mature  or  increase.  As  long  as  I  could 
add  to  my  working  capital,  I  was  content,  while 
the  remnants  of  my  speculations  found  a  refuge  on 
the  Clear  Fork. 

During  the  winter  of  1871-72  very  little  of  im 
portance  transpired.  Several  social  letters  passed 


142  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

between  Major  Mabry  and  myself,  in  one  of  which 
he  casually  mentioned  the  fact  that  land  scrip  had 
declined  until  it  was  offered  on  the  streets  of  the 
capital  as  low  as  twenty  dollars  a  section.  He  knew 
I  had  been  dabbling  in  land  certificates,  and  in  a 
friendly  spirit  wanted  to  post  me  on  their  decline, 
and  had  incidentally  mentioned  the  fact  for  my 
information.  Some  inkling  of  horse  sense  told  me 
that  I  ought  to  secure  more  land,  and  after  think 
ing  the  matter  over,  I  wrote  to  a  merchant  in  Aus 
tin,  and  had  him  buy  me  one  hundred  sections. 
He  was  very  anxious  to  purchase  a  second  hundred 
at  the  same  figure,  but  it  would  make  too  serious 
an  inroad  into  my  trading  capital,  and  I  declined 
his  friendly  assistance.  My  wife  was  the  only 
person  whom  I  took  into  confidence  in  buying  the 
scrip,  and  I  even  had  her  secrete  it  in  the  bot 
tom  of  a  trunk,  with  strict  admonitions  never  to 
mention  it  unless  it  became  of  value.  It  was  not 
taxable,  the  public  domain  was  bountiful,  and  I 
was  young  enough  man  those  days  to  bide  my  time. 
The  winter  proved  a  severe  one  in  Kansas. 
Nearly  every  drover  who  wintered  his  cattle  in  the 
north  met  with  almost  complete  loss.  The  previ 
ous  summer  had  been  too  wet  for  cattle  to  do  well, 
and  they  had  gone  into  winter  thin  in  flesh.  In 
stead  of  curing  like  hay,  the  buffalo  grass  had 
rotted  from  excessive  rains,  losing  its  nutritive 
qualities,  and  this  resulted  in  serious  loss  among 


THE   SCHOOL  OF   EXPERIENCE       143 

all  range  cattle.  The  result  was  financial  ruin  to 
many  drovers,  and  even  augured  a  lighter  drive 
north  the  coming  spring.  Early  in  the  winter  I 
bought  two  brands  of  cattle  in  Erath  County,  pay 
ing  half  cash  and  getting  six  months'  time  on  the 
remainder.  Both  brands  occupied  the  same  range, 
and  when  we  gathered  them  in  the  early  spring, 
they  counted  out  a  few  over  six  thousand  animals. 
These  two  contingents  were  extra  good  cattle,  cost 
ing  me  five  dollars  a  head,  counting  yearlings  up, 
and  from  them  I  selected  two  thousand  steer  cattle 
for  the  trail.  The  mixed  stuff  was  again  sent  to  my 
Clear  Fork  ranch,  and  the  steers  went  into  a  neigh 
borhood  herd  intended  for  the  Kansas  market. 
But  when  the  latter  was  all  ready  to  start,  such 
discouraging  reports  came  down  from  the  north 
that  my  friends  weakened,  and  I  bought  their  cat 
tle  outright. 

My  reputation  as  a  good  trader  was  my  capital. 
I  had  the  necessary  horses,  and,  straining  my  credit, 
the  herd  started  thirty-one  hundred  strong.  The 
usual  incidents  of  flood  and  storm,  of  begging 
Indians  and  caravans  like  ourselves,  formed  the 
chronicle  of  the  trip.  Before  arriving  at  the  Kansas 
line  we  were  met  by  solicitors  of  rival  towns,  each 
urging  the  advantages  of  their  respective  markets 
for  our  cattle.  The  summer  before  a  small  business 
had  sprung  up  at  Newton,  Kansas,  it  being  then 
the  terminal  of  the  Santa  Fe  Eailway.  And  al- 


144  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

though  Newton  lasted  as  a  trail  town  but  a  single 
summer,  its  reputation  for  bloodshed  and  riotous 
disorder  stands  notoriously  alone  among  its  rivals. 
In  the  mean  time  the  Santa  Fe  had  been  extended 
to  Wichita  011  the  Arkansas  River,  and  its  repre 
sentatives  were  now  bidding  for  our  patronage. 
Abilene  was  abandoned,  yet  a  rival  to  Wichita  had 
sprung  up  at  Ellsworth,  some  sixty-five  miles  west 
of  the  former  market,  on  the  Kansas  Pacific  Rail 
way.  The  railroads  were  competing  for  the  cattle 
traffic,  each  one  advertising  its  superior  advantages 
to  drovers,  shippers,  and  feeders.  I  was  impartial, 
but  as  Wichita  was  fully  one  hundred  miles  the 
nearest,  my  cattle  were  turned  for  that  point. 

Wichita  was  a  frontier  village  of  about  two 
thousand  inhabitants.  We  found  a  convenient  camp 
northwest  of  town,  and  went  into  permanent  quar 
ters  to  await  the  opening  of  the  market.  Within  a 
few  weeks  a  light  drive  was  assured,  and  prices 
opened  firm.  Fully  a  quarter-million  less  cattle 
would  reach  the  markets  within  the  State  that 
year,  and  buyers  became  active  in  securing  their 
needed  supply.  Early  in  July  I  sold  the  last  of 
my  herd  and  started  my  outfit  home,  remaining 
behind  to  await  the  arrival  of  my  brother.  The 
trip  was  successful ;  the  purchased  cattle  had  af 
forded  me  a  nice  profit,  while  the  steers  from  the 
two  brands  had  more  than  paid  for  the  mixed  stuff 
left  at  home  on  the  ranch.  Meanwhile  I  renewed 


THE   SCHOOL  OF   EXPERIENCE       145 

old  acquaintances  among  drovers  and  dealers,  Major 
Mabry  among  the  former.  In  a  confidential  mood 
I  confessed  to  him  that  I  had  bought,  on  the  re 
cent  decline,  one  hundred  certificates  of  land  scrip, 
when  he  surprised  me  by  saying  that  there  had 
been  a  later  decline  to  sixteen  dollars  a  section.  I 
was  unnerved  for  an  instant,  but  Major  Mabry 
agreed  with  me  that  to  a  man  who  wanted  the 
land  the  price  was  certainly  cheap  enough,  —  two 
and  a  half  cents  an  acre.  I  pondered  over  the 
matter,  and  as  my  nerve  returned  I  sent  my  mer 
chant  friend  at  Austin  a  draft  and  authorized  him 
to  buy  me  two  hundred  sections  more  of  land  scrip. 
I  was  actually  nettled  to  think  that  my  judgment 
was  so  short-sighted  as  to  buy  anything  that  would 
depreciate  in  value. 

My  brother  arrived  and  reported  splendid  suc 
cess  in  feeding  Colorado  cattle.  He  was  anxious  to 
have  me  join  forces  with  him  and  corn-feed  an 
increased  number  of  beeves  the  coming  winter  on 
his  Missouri  farm.  My  judgment  hardly  approved 
of  the  venture,  but  when  he  urged  a  promised  visit 
of  our  parents  to  his  home,  I  consented  and  agreed 
to  furnish  the  cattle.  He  also  encouraged  me  to 
bring  as  many  as  my  capital  would  admit  of,  assur 
ing  me  that  I  would  find  a  ready  sale  for  any  sur 
plus  among  his  neighbors.  My  brother  returned  to 
Missouri,  and  I  took  the  train  for  Ellsworth,  where 
I  bought  a  carload  of  picked  cow-horses,  shipping 


146  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

them  to  Kit  Carson,  Colorado.  From  there  I 
drifted  into  the  Fountain  valley  at  the  base  of 
the  mountains,  where  I  made  a  trade  for  seven 
hundred  native  steers,  three  and  four  years  old. 
They  were  fine  cattle,  nearly  all  reds  and  roans. 
While  I  was  gathering  them  a  number  of  amus 
ing  incidents  occurred.  The  round-ups  carried  us 
down  on  to  the  main  Arkansas  River,  and  in 
passing  Pueblo  we  discovered  a  number  of  range 
cattle  impounded  in  the  town.  I  cannot  give  it  as 
a  fact,  but  the  supposition  among  the  cowmen  was 
that  the  object  of  the  officials  was  to  raise  some 
revenue  by  distressing  the  cattle.  The  result  was 
that  an  outfit  of  men  rode  into  the  village  during 
the  night,  tore  down  the  pound,  and  turned  the 
cattle  back  on  the  prairie.  The  prime  movers  in 
the  raid  were  suspected,  and  the  next  evening  when 
a  number  of  us  rode  into  town  an  attempt  was 
made  to  arrest  us,  resulting  in  a  fight,  in  which  an 
officer  was  killed  and  two  cowboys  wounded.  The 
citizens  rallied  to  the  support  of  the  officers,  and 
about  thirty  range  men,  including  myself,  were 
arrested  and  thrown  into  jail.  We  sent  for  a  law 
yer,  and  the  following  morning  the  majority  of  us 
were  acquitted.  Some  three  or  four  of  the  boys 
were  held  for  trial,  bonds  being  furnished  by  the 
best  men  in  the  town,  and  that  night  a  party  of 
cowboys  reentered  the  village,  carried  away  the  two 
wounded  men  and  spirited  them  out  of  the  country. 


THE   SCHOOL   OF   EXPERIENCE       147 

Pueblo  at  that  time  was  a  unique  town.  Live 
stock  interests  were  its  main  support,  and  I  dis 
tinctly  remember  Gann's  outfitting  store.  At  night 
one  could  find  anywhere  from  ten  to  thirty  cow 
boys  sleeping  on  the  counters,  the  proprietor  turning 
the  keys  over  to  them  at  closing  time,  not  knowing 
one  in  ten,  and  sleeping  at  his  own  residence.  The 
same  custom  prevailed  at  Gallup  the  saddler's, 
never  an  article  being  missed  from  either  establish 
ment,  and  both  men  amassing  fortunes  out  of  the 
cattle  trade  in  subsequent  years.  The  range  man's 
patronage  had  its  peculiarities  ;  the  firm  of  Wright, 
Beverly  &  Co.  of  Dodge  City,  Kansas,  accumulated 
seven  thousand  odd  vests  during  the  trail  days. 
When  a  cow-puncher  bought  a  new  suit  he  had  no 
use  for  an  unnecessary  garment  like  a  vest  and  left 
it  behind.  It  was  restored  to  the  stock,  where  it 
can  yet  be  found. 

Early  in  August  the  herd  was  completed.  I 
accepted  seven  hundred  and  twenty  steers,  invest 
ing  every  cent  of  spare  money,  reserving  only  suffi 
cient  to  pay  my  expenses  en  route.  It  was  my 
intention  to  drive  the  cattle  through  to  Missouri, 
the  distance  being  a  trifle  less  than  six  hundred 
miles  or  a  matter  of  six  weeks'  travel.  Four  men 
were  secured,  a  horse  was  packed  with  provisions 
and  blankets,  and  we  started  down  the  Arkansas 
River.  For  the  first  few  days  I  did  very  little  but 
build  air  castles.  I  pictured  myself  driving  herds 


148  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

from  Texas  in  the  spring,  reinvesting  the  proceeds 
in  better  grades  of  cattle  and  feeding  them  corn  in 
the  older  States,  selling  in  time  to  again  buy  and 
come  up  the  trail.  I  even  planned  to  send  for  my 
wife  and  baby,  and  looked  forward  to  a  happy  re 
union  with  my  parents  during  the  coming  winter, 
with  not  a  cloud  in  my  roseate  sky.  But  there  were 
breakers  ahead. 

An  old  military  trail  ran  southeast  from  Fort 
Larned  to  other  posts  in  the  Indian  Territory. 
Over  this  government  road  had  come  a  number  of 
herds  of  Texas  cattle,  all  of  them  under  contract, 
which,  in  reaching  their  destination,  had  avoided 
the  markets  of  Wichita  and  Ellsworth.  I  crossed 
their  trail  with  my  Colorado  natives,  —  the  through 
cattle  having  passed  a  month  or  more  before, — 
never  dreaming  of  any  danger.  Ten  days  afterward 
I  noticed  a  number  of  my  steers  were  ailing ;  their 
ears  drooped,  they  refused  to  eat,  and  fell  to  the 
rear  as  we  grazed  forward.  The  next  morning 
there  were  forty  head  unable  to  leave  the  bed- 
ground,  and  by  noon  a  number  of  them  had  died. 
I  had  heard  of  Texas  fever,  but  always  treated  it 
as  more  or  less  a  myth,  and  now  it  held  my  little 
herd  of  natives  in  its  toils.  By  this  time  we  had 
reached  some  settlement  on  the  Cottonwood,  and 
the  pioneer  settlers  in  Kansas  arose  in  arms  and 
quarantined  me.  No  one  knew  what  the  trouble  was, 
yet  the  cattle  began  dying  like  sheep ;  I  was  per- 


THE   SCHOOL   OF  EXPERIENCE       149 

fectly  helpless,  not  knowing  which  way  to  turn  or 
what  to  do.  Quarantine  was  unnecessary,  as  within 
a  few  days  half  the  cattle  were  sick,  and  it  was  all 
we  could  do  to  move  away  from  the  stench  of  the 
dead  ones. 

A  veterinary  was  sent  for,  who  pronounced  it 
Texas  fever.  I  had  previously  cut  open  a  number 
of  dead  animals,  and  found  the  contents  of  their 
stomachs  and  manifolds  so  dry  that  they  would 
flash  and  burn  like  powder.  The  fever  had  dried 
up  their  very  internals.  In  the  hope  of  adminis 
tering  a  purgative,  I  bought  whole  fields  of  green 
corn,  and  turned  the  sick  and  dying  cattle  into 
them.  I  bought  oils  by  the  barrel,  my  men  and 
myself  worked  night  and  day,  inwardly  drenching 
affected  animals,  yet  we  were  unable  to  stay  the 
ravages  of  death.  Once  the  cause  of  the  trouble 
was  located,  —  crossing  ground  over  which  Texas 
cattle  had  passed,  —  the  neighbors  became  friendly, 
and  sympathized  with  me.  I  gave  them  permission 
to  take  the  fallen  hides,  and  in  return  received 
many  kindnesses  where  a  few  days  before  I  had 
been  confronted  by  shotguns.  This  was  my  first 
experience  with  Texas  fever,  and  the  lessons  that 
I  learned  then  and  afterward  make  me  skeptical  of 
all  theories  regarding  the  transmission  of  the  germ. 

The  story  of  the  loss  of  my  Colorado  herd  is  a 
ghastly  one.  This  fever  is  sometimes  called  splenic, 
and  in  the  present  case,  where  animals  lingered  a 


150  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

week  or  ten  days,  while  yet  alive,  their  skins  fre 
quently  cracked  along  the  spine  until  one  could 
have  laid  two  fingers  in  the  opening.  The  whole 
herd  was  stricken,  less  than  half  a  dozen  animals 
escaping  attack,  scores  dying  within  three  days,  the 
majority  lingering  a  week  or  more.  In  spite  of  our 
every  effort  to  save  them,  as  many  as  one  hundred 
died  in  a  single  day.  I  stayed  with  them  for  six 
weeks,  or  until  the  fever  had  run  through  the  herd, 
spent  my  last  available  dollar  in  an  effort  to  save 
the  dumb  beasts,  and,  having  my  hopes  frustrated, 
sold  the  remnant  of  twenty-six  head  for  five  dol 
lars  apiece.  I  question  if  they  were  worth  the 
money,  as  three  fourths  of  them  were  fever-burnt 
and  would  barely  survive  a  winter,  the  only  animals 
of  value  being  some  half  dozen  which  had  escaped 
the  general  plague.  I  gave  each  of  my  men  two 
horses  apiece,  and  divided  my  money  with  them, 
and  they  started  back  to  Colorado,  while  I  turned 
homeward  a  wiser  but  poorer  man.  Whereas  I  had 
left  Wichita  three  months  before  with  over  sixteen 
thousand  dollars  clear  cash,  I  returned  with  eighteen 
saddle  horses  and  not  as  many  dollars  in  money. 

My  air-castles  had  fallen.  Troubles  never  come 
singly,  and  for  the  last  two  weeks,  while  working 
with  the  dying  cattle,  I  had  suffered  with  chills  and 
fever.  The  summer  had  been  an  unusually  wet  one, 
vegetation  had  grown  up  rankly  in  the  valley  of 
the  Arkansas,  and  after  the  first  few  frosts  the  very 


THE  SCHOOL  OF  EXPERIENCE       151 

atmosphere  reeked  with  malaria.    I  had  been  sleep 
ing  on  the  ground  along  the  river  for  over  a  month, 
drinking  impure  water  from  the  creeks,  and  I  fell 
an  easy  victim  to  the  prevailing  miasma.  Nearly  all 
the  Texas  drovers  had  gone  home,  but,  luckily  for 
me,  Jim  Daugherty  had  an  outfit  yet  at  Wichita 
and  invited  me  to  his  wagon.    It  might  be  a  week 
or  ten  days  before  he  would  start  homeward,  as  he 
was  holding  a  herd  of  cows,  sold  to  an  Indian  con 
tractor,  who  was  to  receive  the  same  within  two 
weeks.    In  the  interim  of  waiting,  still   suffering 
from  fever  and  ague,  I  visited  around  among  the 
few  other  cow-camps  scattered  up  and  down  the 
river.    At  one  of  these  I  met  a  stranger,  a  quiet 
little  man,  who  also  had  been  under  the  weather 
from  malaria,  but  was  then  recovering.    He  took 
an  interest  in  my  case  and  gave  me  some  medicine 
to  break  the  chills,  and  we  visited  back  and  forth. 
I  soon  learned  that  he  had  come  down  with  some 
of  his  neighbors  from  Council  Grove ;  that  they 
expected  to  buy  cattle,  and  that  he  was  banker  for 
the  party.    He  was  much  interested  in  everything 
pertaining  to  Texas  ;  and  when  I  had  given  him 
an  idea  of  the  cheapness  of  lands  and  live  stock  in 
my  adopted  State,  he  expressed  himself  as  anxious 
to  engage  in  trailing  cattle  north.    A  great  many 
Texas  cattle  had  been  matured  in  his  home  county, 
and  he  thoroughly  understood  the  advantages  of 
developing  southern  steers  in  a  northern  climate. 


152  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

Many  of  his  neighbors  had  made  small  fortunes  in 

,  buying  young  stock  at  Abilene,  holding  them  a  year 

or  two,  and  shipping  them  to  market  as  fat  cattle. 

The  party  bought  six  hundred  two-year-old  steers, 
and  my  new-found  friend,  the  banker,  invited  me 
to  assist  in  the  receiving.  My  knowledge  of  range 
cattle  was  a  decided  advantage  to  the  buyers,  who 
no  doubt  were  good  farmers,  yet  were  sadly  handi 
capped  when  given  pick  and  choice  from  a  Texas 
herd  and  confined  to  ages.  I  cut,  counted,  and  re 
ceived  the  steers,  my  work  giving  such  satisfaction 
that  the  party  offered  to  pay  me  for  my  services. 
It  was  but  a  neighborly  act,  unworthy  of  recom 
pense,  yet  I  won  the  lasting  regard  of  the  banker 
in  protecting  the  interests  of  his  customers.  The 
upshot  of  the  acquaintance  was  that  we  met  in 
town  that  evening  and  had  a  few  drinks  together. 
Neither  one  ever  made  any  inquiry  of  the  other's 
past  or  antecedents,  both  seeming  to  be  satisfied 
with  a  soldier's  acquaintance.  At  the  final  parting, 
I  gave  him  my  name  and  address  and  invited  him 
to  visit  me,  promising  that  we  would  buy  a  herd  of 
cattle  together  and  drive  them  up  the  trail  the  fol 
lowing  spring.  He  accepted  the  invitation  with  a 
hearty  grasp  of  the  hand,  and  the  simple  promise 
"  I  '11  come."  Those  words  were  the  beginning  of 
a  partnership  which  lasted  eighteen  years,  and  a 
friendship  that  death  alone  will  terminate. 

The  Indian  contractor  returned  on  time,  and  the 


THE   SCHOOL   OF  EXPERIENCE       153 

next  day  I  started  home  with  Daugherty's  outfit. 
And  on  the  way,  as  if  I  were  pursued  by  some  un 
relenting  Nemesis,  two  of  my  horses,  with  others, 
were  stolen  by  the  Indians  one  night  when  we  were 
encamped  near  Red  River.    We  trailed  them  west 
ward  nearly  fifty  miles,  but,  on  being  satisfied  they 
were  traveling  night   and  day,  turned  back  and 
continued  our  journey.    I  reached  home  with  six 
teen  horses,  which  for  years  afterwards,  among  my 
hands  and  neighbors,  were   pointed   out   as  An 
thony's   thousand-dollar  cow-ponies.    There  is  no 
denying  the  fact  that  I  keenly  felt  the  loss  of  my 
money,  as  it  crippled  me  in  my  business,  while  my 
ranch  expenses,  amounting  to  over  one  thousand 
dollars,  were  unpaid.    I  was  rich  in  unsalable  cat 
tle,  owned  a  thirty-two-thousand-acre  ranch,  saddle 
horses  galore,  and  was  in  debt.    My  wife's  trunk 
was  half  full  of  land  scrip,  and  to  have  admitted 
the  fact  would  only  have  invited  ridicule.    But  my 
tuition  was  paid,  and  all  I  asked  was  a  chance,  for 
I  knew  the  ropes  in  handling  range  cattle.    Yet  this 
was  the  second  time  that  I  had  lost  my  money  and 
I  began  to  doubt  myself.    "  You  stick  to  cows," 
said  Charlie  Goodnight  to  me  that  winter,  "and 
they  '11  bring  you  out  on  top  some  day.    I  thought 
I  saw  something  in  you  when  you  first  went  to 
work  for  Loving  and  me.     Reed,  if  you  '11  just  im 
bibe  a  little  caution  with  your  energy,  you  '11  make 
a  fortune  out  of  cattle  yet." 


CHAPTER  X 
THE  PANIC   OF  73 

I  HAVE  never  forgotten  those  encouraging  words 
of  my  first  employer.  Friends  tided  my  finances 
over,  and  letters  passed  between  my  banker  friend 
and  myself,  resulting  in  an  appointment  to  meet 
him  at  Fort  Worth  early  in  February.  There  was 
no  direct  railroad  at  the  tune,  the  route  being  by 
St.  Louis  and  Texarkana,  with  a  long  trip  by  stage 
to  the  meeting  point.  No  definite  agreement  existed 
between  us;  he  was  simply  paying  me  a  visit,  with 
the  view  of  looking  into  the  cattle  trade  then  exist 
ing  between  our  respective  States.  There  was  no 
obligation  whatever,  yet  I  had  hopes  of  interesting 
him  sufficiently  to  join  issues  with  me  in  driving  a 
herd  of  cattle.  I  wish  I  could  describe  the  actual 
feelings  of  a  man  who  has  had  money  and  lost  it. 
Never  in  my  life  did  such  opportunities  present 
themselves  for  investment  as  were  tendered  to  me 
that  winter.  No  less  than  half  a  dozen  brands  of 
cattle  were  offered  to  me  at  the  former  terms  of 
half  cash  and  the  balance  to  suit  my  own  conven 
ience.  But  I  lacked  the  means  to  even  provision  a 
wagon  for  a  month's  work,  and  I  was  compelled  to 


THE  PANIC   OF  '73  155 

turn  my  back  on  all  bargains,  many  of  which  were 
duplicates  of  my  former  successes.  I  was  humbled 
to  the  very  dust ;  I  bowed  my  neck  to  the  heel  of 
circumstances,  and  looked  forward  to  the  coining 
of  my  casual  acquaintance. 

I  have  read  a  few  essays  on  the  relation  of  money 
to  a  community.  None  of  our  family  were  ever 
given  to  theorizing,  yet  I  know  how  it  feels  to  be 
moneyless,  my  experience  with  Texas  fever  afford 
ing  me  a  post-graduate  course.  Born  with  a  rest 
less  energy,  I  have  lived  in  the  pit  of  despair  for 
the  want  of  money,  and  again,  with  the  use  of  it, 
have  bent  a  legislature  to  my  will  and  wish.  All  of 
which  is  foreign  to  my  tale,  and  I  hasten  on.  Dur 
ing  the  first  week  in  February  I  drove  in  to  Fort 
Worth  to  await  the  arrival  of  my  friend,  Calvin 
Hunter,  banker  and  stockman  of  Council  Grove, 
Kansas.  Several  letters  were  awaiting  me  in  the 
town,  notifying  me  of  his  progress,  and  in  due  time 
he  arrived  and  was  welcomed.  The  next  morning 
we  started,  driving  a  good  span  of  mules  to  a  buck- 
board,  expecting  to  cover  the  distance  to  the  Bra 
zos  in  two  days.  There  were  several  ranches  at 
which  we  could  touch,  en  route,  but  we  loitered 
along,  making  wide  detours  in  order  to  drive 
through  cattle,  not  a  feature  of  the  country  escap 
ing  the  attention  of  my  quiet  little  companion.  The 
soil,  the  native  grasses,  the  natural  waters,  the  gen 
eral  topography  of  the  country,  rich  in  its  primal 


156  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

beauty,  furnished  a  panorama  to  the  eye  both  pleas 
ing  and  exhilarating.  But  the  main  interest  cen 
tred  in  the  cattle,  thousands  of  which  were  always 
in  sight,  lingering  along  the  watercourses  or  graz 
ing  at  random. 

We  reached  the  Edwards  ranch  early  the  second 
evening.  In  the  two  days'  travel,  possibly  twenty 
thousand  cattle  came  under  our  immediate  observa 
tion.  All  the  country  was  an  open  range,  brands 
intermingling,  all  ages  and  conditions,  running  from 
a  sullen  bull  to  seven-year-old  beeves,  or  from  a  year 
ling  heifer  to  the  grandmother  of  younger  genera 
tions.  My  anxiety  to  show  the  country  and  its  cattle 
met  a  hearty  second  in  Mr.  Hunter,  and  abandon 
ing  the  buckboard,  we  took  horses  and  rode  up  the 
Brazos  Kiver  as  far  as  old  Fort  Belknap.  All  cattle 
were  wintering  strong.  Turning  south,  we  struck 
the  Clear  Fork  above  my  range  and  spent  a  night 
at  the  ranch,  where  my  men  had  built  a  second 
cabin,  connecting  the  two  by  a  hallway.  After 
riding  through  my  stock  for  two  days,  we  turned 
back  for  the  Brazos.  My  ranch  hands  had  branded 
thirty-one  hundred  calves  the  fall  before,  and  while 
riding  over  the  range  I  was  delighted  to  see  so  many 
young  steers  in  my  different  brands.  But  our  jaunt 
had  only  whetted  the  appetite  of  my  guest  to  see 
more  of  the  country,  and  without  any  waste  of  time 
we  started  south  with  the  buckboard,  going  as  far 
as  Comanche  County.  Every  day's  travel  brought 


THE   PANIC   OF  '73  157 

us  in  contact  with  cattle  for  sale ;  the  prices  were 
an  incentive,  but  we  turned  east  and  came  back  up 
the  valley  of  the  Brazos.  I  offered  to  continue  our 
sightseeing,  but  my  guest  pleaded  for  a  few  days' 
time  until  he  could  hear  from  his  banking  associ 
ates.  I  needed  a  partner  and  needed  one  badly, 
and  was  determined  to  interest  Mr.  Hunter  if  it 
took  a  whole  month.  And  thereby  hangs  a  tale. 

The  native  Texan  is  not  distinguished  for  energy 
or  ambition.  His  success  in  cattle  is  largely  due  to 
the  fact  that  nearly  all  the  work  can  be  done  on 
horseback.  Yet  in  that  particular  field  he  stands 
at  the  head  of  his  class ;  for  whether  in  Montana 
or  his  own  sunny  Texas,  when  it  comes  to  handling 
cattle,  from  reading  brands  to  cutting  a  trainload 
of  beeves,  he  is  without  a  peer.  During  the  palmy 
days  of  the  Cherokee  Strip,  a  Texan  invited  Captain 
Stone,  a  Kansas  City  man,  to  visit  his  ranch  in  Tom 
Green  County  and  put  up  a  herd  of  steers  to  be 
driven  to  Stone's  beef  ranch  in  the  Cherokee  Out 
let.  The  invitation  was  accepted,  and  on  the  arrival 
of  the  Kansas  City  man  at  the  Texan's  ranch,  host 
and  guest  indulged  in  a  friendly  visit  of  several 
days'  duration.  It  was  the  northern  cowman's  first 
visit  to  the  Lone  Star  State,  and  he  naturally  felt 
impatient  to  see  the  cattle  which  he  expected  to 
buy.  But  the  host  made  110  movement  to  show  the 
stock  until  patience  ceased  to  be  a  virtue,  when 
Captain  Stone  moved  an  adjournment  of  the  social 


158  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

session  and  politely  asked  to  be  shown  a  sample  of 
the  country's  cattle.  The  two  cowmen  were  fast 
friends,  and  no  offense  was  intended  or  taken  ;  but 
the  host  assured  his  guest  there  was  no  hurry, 
offering  to  get  up  horses  and  show  the  stock  the 
following  day.  Captain  Stone  yielded,  and  the  next 
morning  they  started,  but  within  a  few  miles  met 
a  neighbor,  when  all  three  dismounted  in  the  shade 
of  a  tree.  Commonplace  chat  of  the  country  occu 
pied  the  attention  of  the  two  Texans  until  hunger 
or  some  other  warning  caused  one  of  them  to  look 
at  his  watch,  when  it  was  discovered  to  be  three 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  It  was  then  too  late  in  the 
day  to  make  an  extensive  ride,  and  the  ranchman 
invited  his  neighbor  and  guest  to  return  to  the  ranch 
for  the  night.  Another  day  was  wasted  in  enter 
taining  the  neighbor,  the  northern  cowman,  in  the 
meantime,  impatient  and  walking  on  nettles  until 
a  second  start  was  made  to  see  the  cattle.  It  was  a 
foggy  morning,  and  they  started  on  a  different  route 
from  that  previously  taken,  the  visiting  ranchman 
going  along.  Unnoticed,  a  pack  of  hounds  followed 
the  trio  of  horsemen,  and  before  the  fog  lifted  a 
cougar  trail  was  struck  and  the  dogs  opened  in 
a  brilliant  chorus.  The  two  Texans  put  spurs  to 
their  horses  in  following  the  pack,  the  cattle  buyer 
of  necessity  joining  in,  the  chase  leading  into  some 
hills,  from  which  they  returned  after  darkness,  hav 
ing  never  seen  a  cow  during  the  day.  One  trivial 


THE   PANIC   OF  '73  159 

incident  after  another  interfered  with  seeing  the 
cattle  for  ten  days,  when  the  guest  took  his  host 
aside  and  kindly  told  him  that  he  must  be  shown 
the  cattle  or  he  would  go  home. 

"  You  're  not  in  a  hurry,  are  you,  captain  ?  "  inno 
cently  asked  the  Texan.  "  All  right,  then ;  no  trouble 
to  show  the  cattle.  Yes,  they  run  right  around 
home  here  within  twenty-five  miles  of  the  ranch. 
Show  you  a  sample  of  the  stock  within  an  hour's 
ride.  You  can  just  bet  that  old  Tom  Green  County 
has  got  the  steers !  Sugar,  if  I  'd  a-known  that 
you  was  in  a  hurry,  I  could  have  shown  you  the 
cattle  the  next  morning  after  you  come.  Captain, 
you  ought  to  know  me  well  enough  by  this  time  to 
speak  your  little  piece  without  any  prelude.  You 
Yankees  are  so  restless  and  impatient  that  I  seri 
ously  doubt  if  you  get  all  the  comfort  and  enjoy 
ment  out  of  life  that 's  coming  to  you.  Make  haste, 
some  of  you  boys,  and  bring  in  a  remuda ;  Captain 
Stone  and  I  are  going  to  ride  over  on  the  Middle 
Fork  this  morning.  Make  haste,  now  ;  we  're  in  a 
hurry." 

In  due  time  I  suppose  I  drifted  into  the  languor 
ous  ways  of  the  Texan  ;  but  on  the  occasion  of  Mr. 
Hunter's  first  visit  I  was  in  the  need  of  a  moneyed 
partner,  and  accordingly  danced  attendance.  Once 
communication  was  opened  with  his  Northern  asso 
ciates,  we  made  several  short  rides  into  adjoining 
counties,  never  being  gone  over  two  or  three  days. 


160  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN. 

When  we  had  looked  at  cattle  to  his  satisfaction, 
he  surprised  me  by  offering  to  put  fifty  thousand 
dollars  into  young  steers  for  the  Kansas  trade. 
I  never  fainted  in  my  life,  but  his  proposition 
stunned  me  for  an  instant,  or  until  I  could  get  my 
bearings.  The  upshot  of  the  proposal  was  that  we 
entered  into  an  agreement  whereby  I  was  to  pur 
chase  and  handle  the  cattle,  and  he  was  to  make 
himself  useful  in  selling  and  placing  the  stock  in 
his  State.  A  silent  partner  was  furnishing  an  equal 
portion  of  the  means,  and  I  was  to  have  a  third  of 
the  net  profits.  Within  a  week  after  this  agreement 
was  perfected,  things  were  moving.  I  had  the  horses 
and  wagons,  men  were  plentiful,  and  two  outfits 
were  engaged.  Early  in  March  a  contract  was  let 
in  Parker  County  for  thirty-one  hundred  two-year- 
old  steers,  and  another  in  Young  for  fourteen  hun 
dred  threes,  the  latter  to  be  delivered  at  my  ranch. 
George  Edwards  was  to  have  the  younger  cattle, 
and  he  and  Mr.  Hunter  received  the  same,  after 
which  the  latter  hurried  west,  fully  ninety  miles, 
to  settle  for  those  bought  for  delivery  on  the  Clear 
Fork.  In  the  mean  time  my  ranch  outfit  had  gath 
ered  all  our  steer  cattle  two  years  old  and  over, 
having  nearly  twenty-five  hundred  head  under  herd 
on  my  arrival  to  receive  the  three-year-olds.  This 
amount  would  make  an  unwieldy  herd,  and  I  culled 
back  all  short-aged  twos  and  thin  steers  until  my 
individual  contingent  numbered  even  two  thousand. 


THE  PANIC   OF  '73  161 

The  contracted  steers  came  in  on  time,  fully  up  to 
the  specifications,  and  my  herd  was  ready  to  start 
on  the  appointed  day. 

Every  dollar  of  the  fifty  thousand  was  invested 
in  cattle,  save  enough  to  provision  the  wagons  en 
route.  My  ranch  outfit,  with  the  exception  of  two 
men  and  ten  horses,  was  pressed  into  trail  work  as 
a  matter  of  economy,  for  I  was  determined  to  make 
some  money  for  my  partners.  Both  herds  were  to 
meet  and  cross  at  Red  River  Station.  The  season 
was  favorable,  and  everything  augured  for  a  pros 
perous  summer.  At  the  very  last  moment  a  cloud 
arose  between  Mr.  Hunter  and  me,  but  happily 
passed  without  a  storm.  The  night  before  the  sec 
ond  herd  started,  he  and  I  sat  up  until  a  late  hour, 
arranging  our  affairs,  as  it  was  not  his  intention 
to  accompany  the  herds  overland.  After  all  busi 
ness  matters  were  settled,  lounging  around  a  camp- 
fire,  we  grew  reminiscent,  when  the  fact  developed 
that  my  quiet  little  partner  had  served  in  the  Union 
army,  and  with  the  rank  of  major.  I  always  enjoy 
a  joke,  even  on  myself,  but  I  flashed  hot  and  cold 
on  this  confession.  What !  Reed  Anthony  forming 
a  partnership  with  a  Yankee  major?  It  seemed 
as  though  I  had.  Fortunately  I  controlled  myself, 
and  under  the  excuse  of  starting  the  herd  at  day 
break,  I  excused  myself  and  sought  my  blankets. 
But  not  to  sleep.  On  the  one  hand,  in  the  stillness 
of  the  night  and  across  the  years,  came  the  ac- 


162  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

cusing  voices  of  old  comrades.  My  very  wounds 
seemed  to  reopen  and  curse  me.  Did  my  sufferings 
after  Pittsburg  Landing  mean  nothing?  A  vision 
of  my  dear  old  mother  in  Virginia,  welcoming  me, 
the  only  one  of  her  three  sons  who  returned  from 
the  war,  arraigned  me  sorely.  And  yet,  on  the 
other  hand,  this  man  was  my  guest.  On  my  invi 
tation  he  had  eaten  my  salt.  For  mutual  benefit  • 
we  had  entered  into  a  partnership,  and  I  expected 
to  profit  from  the  investment  of  his  money.  More 
important,  he  had  not  deceived  me  nor  concealed 
anything ;  neither  did  he  know  that  I  had  served 
in  the  Confederate  army.  The  man  was  honest.  I 
was  anxious  to  do  right.  Soldiers  are  generous  to 
a  foe.  While  he  lay  asleep  in  my  camp,  I  reviewed 
the  situation  carefully,  and  judged  him  blameless. 
The  next  morning,  and  ever  afterward,  I  addressed 
him  by  his  military  title.  Nearly  a  year  passed  be 
fore  Major  Hunter  knew  that  he  and  his  Texas 
partner  had  served  in  the  civil  war  under  differ 
ent  flags. 

My  partner  returned  to  the  Edwards  ranch  and 
was  sent  in  to  Fort  Worth,  where  he  took  stage 
and  train  for  home.  The  straight  two-year-old  herd 
needed  road-branding,  as  they  were  accepted  in  a 
score  or  more  brands,  which  delayed  them  in  start 
ing.  Major  Hunter  expected  to  sell  to  farmers,  to 
whom  brands  were  offensive,  and  was  therefore 
opposed  to  more  branding  than  was  absolutely 


THE  PANIC  OF  '73  163 

necessary.  In  order  to  overcome  this  objection,  I 
tally-marked  all  outside  cattle  which  went  into  my 
herd  by  sawing  from  each  steer  about  two  inches 
from  the  right  horn.  As  fast  as  the  cattle  were 
received  this  work  was  easily  done  in  a  chute, 
while  in  case  of  any  loss  by  stampede  the  mark 
would  last  for  years.  The  grass  was  well  forward 
when  both  herds  started,  but  on  arriving  at  Eed 
River  no  less  than  half  a  dozen  herds  were  water- 
bound,  one  of  which  was  George  Edwards's.  A 
delay  of  three  days  occurred,  during  which  two 
other  herds  arrived,  when  the  river  fell,  permitting 
us  to  cross.  I  took  the  lead  thereafter,  the  second 
herd  half  a  day  to  the  rear,  with  the  almost  weekly 
incident  of  being  waterbound  by  intervening  rivers. 
But  as  we  moved  northward  the  floods  seemed 
lighter,  and  on  our  arrival  at  Wichita  the  weather 
settled  into  well-ordered  summer. 

I  secured  my  camp  of  the  year  before.  Major 
Hunter  came  down  by  train,  and  within  a  week 
after  our  arrival  my  outfit  was  settled  with  and 
sent  home.  It  was  customary  to  allow  a  man  half 
wages  returning,  my  partner  approving  and  paying 
the  men,  also  taking  charge  of  all  the  expense  ac 
counts.  Everything  was  kept  as  straight  as  a  bank, 
and  with  one  outfit  holding  both  herds  separate, 
expenses  were  reduced  to  a  minimum.  Major 
Hunter  was  back  and  forth,  between  his  home 
town  and  Wichita,  and  on  nearly  every  occasion 


164  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

brought  along  buyers,  effecting  sales  at  extra  good 
prices.  Cattle  paper  was  considered  gilt-edge  se 
curity  among  financial  men,  and  we  sold  to  worthy 
parties  a  great  many  cattle  on  credit,  the  home 
bank  with  which  my  partners  were  associated  tak 
ing  the  notes  at  their  face.  Matters  rocked  along, 
we  sold  when  we  had  an  opportunity,  and  early 
in  August  the  remnant  of  each  herd  was  thrown 
together  and  half  the  remaining  outfit  sent  home. 
A  drive  of  fully  half  a  million  cattle  had  reached 
Kansas  that  year,  the  greater  portion  of  which  had 
centred  at  Wichita.  We  were  persistent  in  selling, 
and,  having  strong  local  connections,  had  sold  out 
all  our  cattle  long  before  the  financial  panic  of  '73 
even  started.  There  was  a  profitable  business,  how 
ever,  in  buying  herds  and  selling  again  in  small 
quantities  to  farmers  and  stockmen.  My  partners 
were  anxious  to  have  me  remain  to  the  end  of  the 
season,  doing  the  buying,  maintaining  the  camp, 
and  holding  any  stock  on  hand.  In  rummaging 
through  the  old  musty  account-books,  I  find  that 
we  handled  nearly  seven  thousand  head  besides  our 
own  drive,  fifteen  hundred  being  the  most  we  ever 
had  on  hand  at  any  one  time. 

My  active  partner  proved  a  shrewd  man  in  busi 
ness,  and  in  spite  of  the  past  our  friendship  broad 
ened  and  strengthened.  Weeks  before  the  financial 
crash  reached  us  he  knew  of  its  coming,  and  our 
house  was  set  in  order.  When  the  panic  struck 


THE   PANIC   OF  '73  165 

the  West  we  did  not  own  a  hoof  of  cattle,  while  the 
horses  on  hand  were  mine  and  not  for  sale  ;  and  the 
firm  of  Hunter,  Anthony  &  Co.  rode  the  gale  like 
a  seaworthy  ship.  The  panic  reached  Wichita  with 
over  half  the  drive  of  that  year  unsold.  The  local 
banks  began  calling  in  money  advanced  to  drovers, 
buyers  deserted  the  market,  and  prices  went  down 
with  a  crash.  Shipments  of  the  best  through  cattle 
failed  to  realize  more  than  sufficient  to  pay  com 
mission  charges  and  freight.  Ruin  stared  in  the 
face  every  Texan  drover  whose  cattle  were  unsold. 
Only  a  few  herds  were  under  contract  for  fall 
delivery  to  Indian  and  army  contractors.  We  had 
run  from  the  approaching  storm  in  the  nick  of 
time,  even  settling  with  and  sending  my  outfit  home 
before  the  financial  cyclone  reached  the  prairies  of 
Kansas.  My  last  trade  before  the  panic  struck 
was  an  individual  account,  my  innate  weakness  for 
an  abundance  of  saddle  horses  asserting  itself  in 
buying  ninety  head  and  sending  them  home  with 
my  men. 

I  now  began  to  see  the  advantages  of  shrewd 
and  far-seeing  business  associates.  When  the  crash 
came,  scarce  a  dozen  drovers  had  sold  out,  while 
of  those  holding  cattle  at  Wichita  nearly  every  one 
had  locally  borrowed  money  or  owed  at  home  for 
their  herds.  When  the  banks,  panic-stricken  them 
selves,  began  calling  in  short-time  loans,  their  frenzy 
paralyzed  the  market,  many  cattle  being  sacrificed 


166  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

at  forced  sale  and  with  scarce  a  buyer.  In  the  de 
preciation  of  values  from  the  prices  which  prevailed 
in  the  early  summer,  the  losses  to  the  Texas  drovers, 
caused  by  the  panic,  would  amount  to  several  mil 
lion  dollars.  I  came  out  of  the  general  wreck  and 
ruin  untouched,  though  personally  claiming  no 
credit,  as  that  must  be  given  my  partners.  The 
year  before,  when  every  other  drover  went  home 
prosperous  and  happy,  I  returned  "  broke,"  while 
now  the  situation  was  reversed. 

I  spent  a  week  at  Council  Grove,  visiting  with 
my  business  associates.  After  a  settlement  of  the 
year's  business,  I  was  anxious  to  return  home,  hav 
ing  agreed  to  drive  cattle  the  next  year  on  the 
same  terms  and  conditions.  My  partners  gave  me 
a  cash  settlement,  and  outside  of  my  individual 
cattle,  I  cleared  over  ten  thousand  dollars  on  my 
summer's  work.  Major  Hunter,  however,  had  an 
idea  of  reentering  the  market,  —  with  the  first 
symptom  of  improvement  in  the  financial  horizon 
in  the  East,  —  and  I  was  detained.  The  proposi 
tion  of  buying  a  herd  of  cattle  and  wintering  them 
on  the  range  had  been  fully  discussed  between  us, 
and  prices  were  certainly  an  incentive  to  make  the 
venture.  In  an  ordinary  open  winter,  stock  sub 
sisted  on  the  range  all  over  western  Kansas,  espe 
cially  when  a  dry  fall  had  matured  and  cured  the 
buffalo-grass  like  hay.  The  range  was  all  one  could 
wish,  and  Major  Hunter  and  I  accordingly  dropped 


THE   PANIC   OF  '73  167 

down  to  Wichita  to  look  the  situation  over.  We 
arrived  in  the  midst  of  the  panic  and  found  matters 
in  a  deplorable  condition.  Drovers  besought  and 
even  begged  us  to  make  an  offer  on  their  herds,  while 
the  prevailing  prices  of  a  month  before  had  declined 
over  half.  Major  Hunter  and  I  agreed  that  at 
present  figures,  even  if  half  the  cattle  were  lost  by 
a  severe  winter,  there  would  still  be  money  in  the 
venture.  Through  financial  connections  East  my 
partners  knew  of  the  first  signs  of  improvement  in 
the  money-centres  of  the  country.  As  I  recall  the 
circumstances,  the  panic  began  in  the  East  about 
the  middle  of  September,  and  it  was  the  latter  part 
of  October  before  confidence  was  restored,  or  there 
was  any  noticeable  change  for  the  better  in  the 
monetary  situation.  But  when  this  came,  it  found 
us  busy  buying  saddle  horses  and  cattle.  The  great 
bulk  of  the  unsold  stock  consisted  of  cows,  heifers, 
and  young  steers  unfit  for  beef.  My  partners  con 
tended  that  a  three-year-old  steer  ought  to  winter 
anywhere  a  buffalo  could,  provided  he  had  the  flesh 
and  strength  to  withstand  the  rigors  of  the  climate. 
I  had  no  opinions,  except  what  other  cowmen  had 
told  me,  but  was  willing  to  take  the  chances  where 
there  was  a  reasonable  hope  of  success. 

The  first  move  was  to  buy  an  outfit  of  good 
horses.  This  was  done  by  selecting  from  half  a 
dozen  remudas,  a  trail  wagon  was  picked  up,  and 
a  complement  of  men  secured.  Once  it  was  known 


168  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

that  we  were  in  the  market  for  cattle,  competition 
was  brisk,  the  sellers  bidding  against  each  other 
and  fixing  the  prices  at  which  we  accepted  the 
stock.  None  but  three-year-old  steers  were  taken, 
and  in  a  single  day  we  closed  trades  on  five  thou 
sand  head.  I  received  the  cattle,  confining  my 
selections  to  five  road  and  ten  single-ranch  brands, 
as  it  was  not  our  intention  to  rebrand  so  late  in 
the  season.  There  was  nothing  to  do  but  cut,  count, 
and  accept,  and  on  the  evening  of  the  third  day 
the  herd  was  all  ready  to  start  for  its  winter  range. 
The  wagon  had  been  well  provisioned,  and  we 
started  southwest,  expecting  to  go  into  winter 
quarters  on  the  first  good  range  encountered.  I 
had  taken  a  third  interest  in  the  herd,  paying  one 
sixth  of  its  purchase  price,  the  balance  being  car 
ried  for  me  by  my  partners.  Major  Hunter  accom 
panied  us,  the  herd  being  altogether  too  large  and 
unwieldy  to  handle  well,  but  we  grazed  it  forward 
with  a  front  a  mile  wide.  Delightful  fall  weather 
favored  the  cattle,  and  on  the  tenth  day  we  reached 
the  Medicine  River,  where,  by  the  unwritten  law 
of  squatter's  rights,  we  preempted  ten  miles  of 
its  virgin  valley.  The  country  was  fairly  carpeted 
with  well-cured  buffalo-grass;  on  the  north  and 
west  was  a  range  of  sand-dunes,  while  on  the  south 
the  country  was  broken  by  deep  coulees,  afford 
ing  splendid  shelter  in  case  of  blizzards  or  wintry 
storms. 


THE  PANIC   OF  73  169 

A  dugout  was  built  on  either  end  of  the  range. 
Major  Hunter  took  the  wagon  and  team  and  went 
to  the  nearest  settlement,  returning  with  a  load  of 
corn,  having  contracted  for  the  delivery  of  five 
hundred  bushels  more.  Meanwhile  I  was  busy  lo 
cating  the  cattle,  scattering  them  sparsely  over  the 
surrounding  country,  cutting  them  into  bunches  of 
not  more  than  ten  to  twenty  head.  Corrals  and  cosy 
shelters  were  built  for  a  few  horses,  comfortable 
quarters  for  the  men,  and  we  settled  down  for  the 
winter  with  everything  snug  and  secure.  By  the 
first  of  December  the  force  was  reduced  to  four 
men  at  each  camp,  all  of  whom  were  experienced 
in  holding  cattle  in  the  winter.  Lines  giving  ample 
room  to  our  cattle  were  established,  which  were  to 
be  ridden  both  evening  and  morning  in  any  and  all 
weather.  Two  Texans,  both  experts  as  trailers,  were 
detailed  to  trail  down  any  cattle  which  left  the 
boundaries  of  the  range.  The  weather  continued 
fine,  and  with  the  camps  well  provisioned,  the  major 
and  I  returned  to  the  railroad  and  took  train  for 
Council  Grove.  I  was  impatient  to  go  home,  and 
took  the  most  direct  route  then  available.  Railroads 
were  just  beginning  to  enter  the  West,  and  one  had 
recently  been  completed  across  the  eastern  portion 
of  the  Indian  Territory,  its  destination  being  south 
of  Red  River.  With  nothing  but  the  clothes  on  my 
back  and  a  saddle,  I  started  home,  and  within 
twenty-four  hours  arrived  at  Denison,  Texas.  Con- 


170  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

necting  stages  carried  me  to  Fort  Worth,  where 
I  bought  a  saddle  horse,  and  the  next  evening  I 
was  playing  with  the  babies  at  the  home  ranch. 
It  had  been  an  active  summer  with  me,  but  suc 
cess  had  amply  rewarded  my  labors,  while  every 
cloud  had  disappeared  and  the  future  was  rich  in 
promise. 


CHAPTER  XI 
A  PROSPEROUS  YEAR 

AN  open  winter  favored  the  cattle  on  the  Medicine 
River.  My  partners  in  Kansas  wrote  me  encour 
agingly,  and  plans  were  outlined  for  increasing 
our  business  for  the  coming  summer.  There  was 
no  activity  in  live  stock  during  the  winter  in  Texas, 
and  there  would  be  no  trouble  in  putting  up  herds 
at  prevailing  prices  of  the  spring  before.  I  spent 
an  inactive  winter,  riding  back  and  forth  to  my 
ranch,  hunting  with  hounds,  and  killing  an  occa 
sional  deer.  While  visiting  at  Council  Grove  the 
fall  before,  Major  Hunter  explained  to  our  silent 
partner  the  cheapness  of  Texas  lands.  Neither  one 
of  my  associates  cared  to  scatter  their  interests  be 
yond  the  boundaries  of  their  own  State,  yet  both 
urged  me  to  acquire  every  acre  of  cheap  land  that 
my  means  would  permit.  They  both  recited  the  his 
tory  and  growth  in  value  of  the  lands  surrounding 
The  Grove,  telling  me  how  cheaply  they  could  have 
bought  the  same  ten  years  before,  —  at  the  govern 
ment  price  of  a  dollar  and  a  quarter  an  acre,  —  and 
that  already  there  had  been  an  advance  of  four  to 
five  hundred  per  cent.  They  urged  me  to  buy  scrip 


172  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

and  locate  land,  assuring  me  that  it  was  only  a 
question  of  time  until  the  people  of  Texas  would 
arise  in  their  might  and  throw  off  the  yoke  of  Re 
construction. 

At  home  general  opinion  was  just  the  reverse. 
No  one  cared  for  more  land  than  a  homestead  or 
for  immediate  use.  No  locations  had  been  made 
adjoining  my  ranch  on  the  Clear  Fork,  and  it  began 
to  look  as  if  I  had  more  land  than  I  needed.  Yet 
I  had  confidence  enough  in  the  advice  of  my  part 
ners  to  reopen  negotiations  with  my  merchant  friend 
at  Austin  for  the  purchase  of  more  land  scrip. 
The  panic  of  the  fall  before  had  scarcely  affected 
the  frontier  of  Texas,  and  was  felt  in  only  a  few 
towns  of  any  prominence  in  the  State.  There  had 
been  no  money  in  circulation  since  the  war,  and 
a  financial  stringency  elsewhere  made  little  differ 
ence  among  the  local  people.  True,  the  Kansas 
cattle  market  had  sent  a  little  money  home,  but  a 
bad  winter  with  drovers  holding  cattle  in  the  North, 
followed  by  a  panic,  had  bankrupted  nearly  every 
cowman,  many  of  them  with  heavy  liabilities  in 
Texas.  There  were  very  few  banks  in  the  State, 
and  what  little  money  there  was  among  the  peo 
ple  was  generally  hoarded  to  await  the  dawn  of  a 
brighter  day. 

My  wife  tells  a  story  about  her  father,  which 
shows  similar  conditions  prevailing  during  the  civil 
war.  The  only  outlet  for  cotton  in  Texas  during 


A   PROSPEROUS   YEAR  173 

the  rebellion  was  by  way  of  Mexico.  Matamoros, 
near  the  mouth  of  the  Rio  Grande,  waxed  opulent  in 
its  trade  of  contrabrand  cotton,  the  Texas  product 
crossing  the  river  anywhere  for  hundreds  of  miles 
above  and  being  freighted  down  on  the  Mexican  side 
to  tide-water.  The  town  did  an  immense  business 
during  the  blockade  of  coast  seaports,  twenty-dollar 
gold  pieces  being  more  plentiful  then  than  nickels 
are  to-day,  the  cotton  finding  a  ready  market  at  war 
prices  and  safe  shipment  under  foreign  flags.  My 
wife's  father  was  engaged  in  the  trade  of  buying 
cotton  at  interior  points,  freighting  it  by  ox  trains 
over  the  Mexican  frontier,  and  thence  down  the  river 
to  Matamoros.  Once  the  staple  reached  neutral  soil, 
it  was  palmed  off  as  a  local  product,  and  the  Fed 
eral  government  dared  not  touch  it,  even  though  they 
knew  it  to  be  contrabrand  of  war.  The  business  was 
transacted  in  gold,  and  it  was  Mr.  Edwards's  custom 
to  bury  the  coin  on  his  return  from  each  trading 
trip.  My  wife,  then  a  mere  girl  and  the  oldest  of 
the  children  at  home,  was  taken  into  her  father's 
confidence  in  secreting  the  money.  The  country 
was  full  of  bandits,  either  government  would  have 
confiscated  the  gold  had  they  known  its  where 
abouts,  and  the  only  way  to  insure  its  safety  was  to 
bury  it.  After  several  years  trading  in  cotton,  Mr. 
Edwards  accumulated  considerable  money,  and  on 
one  occasion  buried  the  treasure  at  night  between 
two  trees  in  an  adjoining  wood.  Unexpectedly  one 


174  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

day  he  had  occasion  to  use  some  money  in  buying 
a  cargo  of  cotton,  the  children  were  at  a  distant 
neighbor's,  and  he  went  into  the  woods  alone  to  un 
earth  the  gold.  But  hogs,  running  in  the  timber, 
had  rooted  up  the  ground  in  search  of  edible  roots, 
and  Edwards  was  unable  to  locate  the  spot  where 
his  treasure  lay  buried.  Fearful  that  possibly  the 
money  had  been  uprooted  and  stolen,  he  sent  for 
the  girl,  who  hastily  returned.  As  my  wife  tells  the 
story,  great  beads  of  perspiration  were  dripping 
from  her  father's  brow  as  the  two  entered  the 
woods.  And  although  the  ground  was  rooted  up, 
the  girl  pointed  out  the  spot,  midway  between  two 
trees,  and  the  treasure  was  recovered  without  a 
coin  missing.  Mr.  Edwards  lost  confidence  in  him 
self,  and  thereafter,  until  peace  was  restored,  my 
wife  and  a  younger  sister  always  buried  the  family 
treasure  by  night,  keeping  the  secret  to  themselves, 
and  producing  the  money  on  demand. 

The  merchant  at  Austin  reported  land  scrip 
plentiful  at  fifteen  to  sixteen  dollars  a  section.  I 
gave  him  an  order  for  two  hundred  certificates, 
and  he  filled  the  bill  so  promptly  that  I  ordered 
another  hundred,  bringing  my  unlocated  holdings  up 
to  six  hundred  sections.  My  land  scrip  was  a  stand 
ing  joke  between  my  wife  and  me,  and  I  often 
promised  her  that  when  we  built  a  house  and  moved 
to  the  Clear  Fork,  if  the  scrip  was  still  worthless  she 
might  have  the  certificates  to  paper  a  room  with. 


A  PROSPEROUS   YEAR  175 

They  were  nicely  lithographed,  the  paper  was  of  the 
very  best  quality,  and  they  went  into  my  wife's  trunk 
to  await  their  destiny.  Had  it  been  known  outside 
that  I  held  such  an  amount  of  scrip,  I  would  have 
been  subjected  to  ridicule,  and  no  doubt  would 
have  given  it  to  some  surveyor  to  locate  on  shares. 
Still  I  had  a  vague  idea  that  land  at  two  and  a  half 
cents  an  acre  would  never  hurt  me.  Several  times 
in  the  past  I  had  needed  the  money  tied  up  in  scrip, 
and  then  I  would  regret  having  bought  it.  After 
the  loss  of  my  entire  working  capital  by  Texas 
fever,  I  was  glad  I  had  foresight  enough  to  buy  a 
quantity  that  summer.  And  thus  I  swung  like  a 
pendulum  between  personal  necessities  and  public 
opinion ;  but  when  those  long-headed  Yankee  part 
ners  of  mine  urged  me  to  buy  land,  I  felt  once 
more  that  I  was  on  the  right  track  and  recovered 
my  grasp.  I  might  have  located  fifty  miles  of  the 
valley  of  the  Clear  Fork  that  winter,  but  it  would 
have  entailed  some  little  expense,  the  land  would 
then  have  been  taxable,  and  I  had  the  use  of  it 
without  outlay  or  trouble. 

An  event  of  great  importance  to  the  people  of 
Texas  occurred  during  the  winter  of  1873-74. 
The  election  the  fall  before  ended  in  dispute,  both 
great  parties  claiming  the  victory.  On  the  meet 
ing  of  the  legislature  to  canvass  the  vote,  all  the 
negro  militia  of  the  State  were  concentrated  in  and 
around  the  capitol  building.  The  Keconstruction 


176  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

regime  refused  to  vacate,  and  were  fighting  to  re 
tain  control ;  the  best  element  of  the  people  were 
asserting  in  no  unmistakable  terms  their  rights, 
and  bloodshed  seemed  inevitable.  The  federal 
government  was  appealed  to,  but  refused  to  inter 
fere.  The  legislature  was  with  the  people,  and 
when  the  latter  refused  to  be  intimidated  by  a  dis 
play  of  force,  those  in  possession  yielded  the  reins, 
and  Governor  Coke  was  inaugurated  January  15, 
1874 ;  and  thus  the  prediction  of  my  partners, 
uttered  but  a  few  months  before,  became  history. 

Major  Hunter  came  down  again  about  the  last 
of  February.  Still  unshaken  in  his  confidence  in 
the  future  of  Texas,  he  complimented  me  on  secur 
ing  more  land  scrip.  He  had  just  returned  from 
our  camps  on  the  Medicine  River,  and  reported 
the  cattle  coming  through  in  splendid  condition. 
Gray  wolves  had  harassed  the  herd  during  the  early 
winter  ;  but  long-range  rifles  and  poison  were  fur 
nished,  and  our  men  waged  a  relentless  war  on 
these  pirates  along  the  Medicine.  Cattle  in  Texas 
had  wintered  strong,  which  would  permit  of  active 
operations  beginning  earlier  than  usual,  and  after 
riding  the  range  for  a  week  we  were  ready  for 
business.  It  was  well  known  in  all  the  surrounding 
country  that  we  would  again  be  in  the  market  for 
trail  cattle,  and  offerings  were  plentiful.  These 
tenders  ran  anywhere  from  stock  cattle  to  heavy 
beeves ;  but  the  market  which  we  were  building  up 


A   PROSPEROUS   YEAR  177 

with  farmers  at  Council  Grove  required  young  two 
and  three  year  old  steers.  It  again  fell  to  my  pro 
vince  to  do  the  buying,  and  with  the  number  of 
brands  for  sale  in  the  country  I  expected,  with  the 
consent  of  my  partners,  to  make  a  new  departure. 
I  was  beginning  to  understand  the  advantages  of 
growing  cattle.  My  holdings  of  mixed  stock  on  the 
Clear  Fork  had  virtually  cost  me  nothing,  and 
while  they  may  have  been  unsalable,  yet  there  was 
a  steady  growth  and  they  were  a  promising  source 
of  income.  From  the  results  of  my  mavericking 
and  my  trading  operations  I  had  been  enabled  to 
send  two  thousand  young  steers  up  the  trail  the 
spring  before,  and  the  proceeds  from  their  sale  had 
lifted  me  from  the  slough  of  despond  and  set  me 
on  a  financial  rock.  Therefore  my  regard  for  the 
eternal  cow  was  enhancing. 

Home  prices  were  again  ten  dollars  for  two-year- 
old  steers  and  twelve  for  threes.  Instead  of  buying 
outright  at  these  figures,  my  proposition  was  to  buy 
individually  brands  of  stock  cattle,  and  turn  over 
all  steers  of  acceptable  ages  at  prevailing  prices  to 
the  firm  of  Hunter,  Anthony  &  Co.  in  making  up 
trail  herds.  We  had  already  agreed  to  drive  ten 
thousand  head  that  spring,  and  my  active  partner 
readily  saw  the  advantages  that  would  accrue  where 
one  had  the  range  and  outfit  to  take  care  of  the 
remnants  of  mixed  stock.  My  partners  were  both 
straining  their  credit  at  home,  and  since  it  was  im- 


178  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

material  to  them,  I  was  given  permission  to  go 
ahead.  This  method  of  buying  might  slightly  delay 
the  starting  of  herds,  and  rather  than  do  so  I  con 
tracted  for  three  thousand  straight  threes  in  Erath 
County.  This  herd  would  start  ten  days  in  ad 
vance  of  any  other,  which  would  give  us  cattle  on 
the  market  at  Wichita  with  the  opening  of  the  sea 
son.  My  next  purchase  was  two  brands  whose 
range  was  around  the  juncture  of  the  main  Brazos 
and  Clear  Fork,  adjoining  my  ranch.  These  cattle 
were  to  be  delivered  at  our  corrals,  as,  having  re 
ceived  the  three-year-olds  from  both  brands  the 
spring  before,  I  had  a  good  idea  how  the  stock 
ought  to  classify.  A  third  brand  was  secured  up  the 
Clear  Fork,  adjacent  to  my  range,  supposed  to 
number  about  three  thousand,  from  which  nothing 
had  been  sold  in  four  years.  This  latter  contingent 
cost  me  five  dollars  a  head,  but  my  boys  knew  the 
brand  well  enough  to  know  that  they  would  run 
forty  per  cent  steer  cattle.  In  all  three  cases  I 
bought  all  right  and  title  to  the  brand,  giving 
them  until  the  last  day  of  March  to  gather,  and 
anything  not  tendered  for  count  on  receiving,  the 
tail  went  with  the  hide. 

From  these  three  brands  I  expected  to  make  up 
the  second  herd  easily.  With  no  market  for  cattle, 
it  was  safe  to  count  on  a  brand  running  one  third 
steers  or  better,  from  which  I  ought  to  get  twenty- 
five  per  cent  of  age  for  trail  purposes.  Long  be- 


A  PROSPEROUS   YEAR  179 

fore  any  receiving  began  I  bought  four  more 
brands  outright  in  adjoining  counties,  setting  the 
day  for  receiving  on  the  5th  of  April,  everything 
to  be  delivered  on  my  ranch  on  the  Clear  Fork. 
There  were  fully  twenty-five  thousand  cattle  in 
these  seven  brands,  and  as  I  had  bought  them  all 
half  cash  and  the  balance  on  six  months'  time,  it 
behooved  me  to  be  on  the  alert  and  protect  my 
interests.  A  trusty  man  was  accordingly  sent  from 
my  ranch  to  assist  in  the  gathering  of  each  of  the 
four  outside  brands,  to  be  present  at  all  round-ups, 
to  see  that  no  steer  cattle  were  held  back,  and  that 
the  dropping  calves  were  cared  for  and  saved. 
This  precaution  was  not  taken  around  my  ranch, 
for  any  animal  which  failed  to  be  counted  my  own 
men  would  look  out  for  by  virtue  of  ownership  of 
the  brand.  My  saddle  horses  were  all  in  fine  con 
dition,  and  were  cut  into  remudas  of  ninety  head 
each,  two  new  wagons  were  fitted  up,  and  all  was 
ready  to  move. 

The  Erath  County  herd  was  to  be  delivered  to 
us  on  the  20th  of  March.  George  Edwards  was  to 
have  charge,  and  he  and  Major  Hunter  started  in 
ample  time  to  receive  the  cattle,  the  latter  proving 
an  apt  scholar,  while  the  former  was  a  thorough 
cowman.  In  the  mean  time  I  had  made  up  a  second 
outfit,  putting  a  man  who  had  made  a  number  of 
trips  with  me  as  foreman  in  charge,  and  we  moved 
out  to  the  Clear  Fork.  The  first  herd  started  on 


180  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

the  22d,  Major  Hunter  accompanying  it  past  the 
Edwards  ranch  and  then  joining  us  on  my  range. 
We  had  kept  in  close  touch  with  the  work  then 
in  progress  along  the  Brazos  and  Clear  Fork,  and 
it  was  probable  that  we  might  be  able  to  receive 
in  advance  of  the  appointed  day.  Fortunately  this 
happened  in  two  cases,  both  brands 'overrunning 
all  expectations  in  general  numbers  and  the  quan 
tity  of  steer  cattle.  These  contingents  were  met, 
counted,  and  received  ten  miles  from  the  ranch, 
nothing  but  the  steers  two  years  old  and  upward 
being  brought  in  to  the  corrals.  The  third  brand, 
from  west  on  the  Clear  Fork,  came  in  on  the  dot, 
and  this  also  surprised  me  in  its  numbers  of  heavy 
steer  cattle.  From  the  three  contingents  I  re 
ceived  over  thirteen  thousand  head,  nearly  four 
thousand  of  which  were  steers  of  trail  age.  On 
the  first  day  of  April  we  started  the  second  herd 
of  thirty-five  hundred  twos  and  threes,  the  latter 
being  slightly  in  the  majority,  but  we  classified 
them  equally.  Major  Hunter  was  pleased  with  the 
quality  of  the  cattle,  and  I  was  more  than  satisfied 
with  results,  as  I  had  nearly  five  hundred  heavy 
steers  left  which  would  easily  qualify  as  beeves. 
Estimating  the  latter  at  what  they  ought  to  net  me 
at  Wichita,  the  remnants  of  stock  cattle  cost  me 
about  a  dollar  and  a  half  a  head,  while  I  had  re 
ceived  more  cash  than  the  amount  of  the  half  pay 
ment. 


A   PROSPEROUS   YEAR  181 

The  beef  steers  were  held  under  herd  to  await 
the  arrival  of  the  other  contingents.  If  they  fell 
short  in  twos  and  threes,  I  had  hopes  of  finding  an 
outlet  for  my  beeves  with  the  last  herd.  The  young 
stuff  and  stock  cattle  were  allowed  to  drift  back  on 
their  own  ranges,  and  we  rested  on  our  oars.  We 
had  warning  of  the  approach  of  outside  brands, 
several  arriving  in  advance  of  appointment,  and 
they  were  received  at  once.  As  before,  every  brand 
overran  expectations,  with  no  shortage  in  steers.  My 
men  had  been  wide  awake,  any  number  of  mature 
beeves  coming  in  with  the  mixed  stock.  As  fast  as 
they  arrived  we  cut  all  steers  of  desirable  age  into 
our  herd  of  beeves,  sending  the  remnant  up  the 
river  about  ten  miles  to  be  put  under  loose  herd  for 
the  first  month.  Fifteen  thousand  cattle  were  ten 
dered  in  the  four  brands,  from  which  we  cut  out 
forty-six  hundred  steers  of  trail  age.  The  numbers 
were  actually  embarrassing,  not  in  stock  cattle,  but 
in  steers,  as  our  trail  herd  numbered  now  over  five 
thousand.  The  outside  outfits  were  all  detained  a 
few  days  for  a  settlement,  lending  their  assistance, 
as  we  tally-marked  all  the  stock  cattle  before  send 
ing  them  up  the  river  to  be  put  under  herd.  This 
work  was  done  in  a  chute  with  branding  irons,  run 
ning  a  short  bar  over  the  holding-brand,  the  object 
being  to  distinguish  animals  received  then  from 
what  might  be  gathered  afterward.  There  were 
nearly  one  hundred  men  present,  and  with  the 


182  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

amount  of  help  available  the  third  herd  was  ready 
to  start  on  the  morning  of  the  6th.  It  numbered 
thirty-five  hundred,  again  nearly  equal  in  twos  and 
threes,  my  ranch  foreman  having  charge.  With 
the  third  herd  started,  the  question  arose  what  to 
do  with  the  remnant  of  a  few  over  sixteen  hundred 
beeves.  To  turn  them  loose  meant  that  with  the 
first  norther  that  blew  they  would  go  back  to  their 
own  range.  Major  Hunter  suggested  that  I  drive 
an  individual  herd.  I  tried  to  sell  him  an  interest 
in  the  cattle,  but  as  their  ages  were  unsuited  to 
his  market,  he  pleaded  bankruptcy,  yet  encouraged 
me  to  fill  up  the  herd  and  drive  them  on  my  own 
account. 

Something  had  to  be  done.  I  bought  sixty 
horses  from  the  different  outfits  then  waiting  for  a 
settlement,  adding  thirty  of  my  own  to  the  remuda, 
made  up  an  outfit  from  the  men  present,  rigged  a 
wagon,  and  called  for  a  general  round-up  of  my 
range.  Two  days  afterward  we  had  fifteen  hundred 
younger  steers  of  my  own  raising  in  the  herd,  and 
on  the  10th  of  the  month  the  fourth  one  moved 
out.  A  day  was  lost  in  making  a  general  settlement, 
after  which  Major  Hunter  and  I  rode  through  the 
mixed  cattle  under  herd,  finding  them  contentedly 
occupying  nearly  ten  miles  of  the  valley  of  the 
Clear  Fork.  Calves  were  dropping  at  the  rate  of 
one  hundred  a  day,  two  camps  of  five  men  each 
held  them  on  an  ample  range,  riding  lines  well  back 


A  PROSPEROUS  YEAR  183 

from  the  valley.  The  next  morning  we  turned  home 
ward,  passing  my  ranch  and  corrals,  which  but  a 
few  days  before  were  scenes  of  activity,  but  now 
deserted  even  by  the  dogs.  From  the  Edwards 
ranch  we  were  driven  in  to  Fort  Worth,  and  by 
the  middle  of  the  month  reached  Wichita. 

No  herds  were  due  to  arrive  for  a  month.  My 
active  partner  continued  on  to  his  home  at  The 
Grove,  and  I  started  for  our  camps  on  the  Medicine 
River.  The  grass  was  coming  with  a  rush,  the  cat 
tle  were  beginning  to  shed  their  winter  coats,  and 
our  men  assured  me  that  the  known  loss  amounted 
to  less  than  twenty  head.  The  boys  had  spent  an 
active  winter,  only  a  few  storms  ever  bunching  the 
cattle,  with  less  than  half  a  dozen  contingents  cross 
ing  the  established  lines.  Even  these  were  fol 
lowed  by  our  trailers  and  brought  back  to  their 
own  range;  and  together  with  wolfing  the  time 
had  passed  pleasantly.  An  incident  occurred  at  the 
upper  camp  that  winter  which  clearly  shows  the  dif 
ference  between  the  cow-hand  of  that  day  and  the 
modern  bronco-buster.  In  baiting  for  wolves,  many 
miles  above  our  range,  a  supposed  trail  of  cattle 
was  cut  by  one  of  the  boys,  who  immediately  re 
ported  the  matter  to  our  Texas  trailer  at  camp. 
They  were  not  our  cattle  to  a  certainty,  yet  it 
was  but  a  neighborly  act  to  catch  them,  so  the  two 
men  took  up  the  trail.  From  appearances  there 
were  not  over  fifteen  head  in  the  bunch,  and  before 


184  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

following  them  many  miles,  the  trailer  became 
suspicious  that  they  were  buffalo  and  not  cattle. 
He  trailed  them  until  they  bedded  down,  when 
he  dismounted  and  examined  every  bed.  No  cow 
ever  lay  down  without  leaving  hair  on  its  bed,  so 
when  the  Texan  had  examined  the  ground  where 
half  a  dozen  had  slept,  his  suspicions  were  con 
firmed.  Declaring  them  buffalo,  the  two  men  took 
up  the  trail  in  a  gallop,  overtaking  the  band  within 
ten  miles  and  securing  four  fine  robes.  There  is 
little  or  no  difference  in  the  tracks  of  the  two 
animals.  I  simply  mention  this,  as  my  patience 
has  been  sorely  tried  with  the  modern  picturesque 
cowboy,  who  is  merely  an  amateur  when  compared 
with  the  men  of  earlier  days. 

I  spent  three  weeks  riding  the  range  on  the 
Medicine.  The  cattle  had  been  carefully  selected, 
now  four  and  five  years  old,  and  if  the  season  was 
favorable  they  would  be  ready  for  shipment  early 
in  the  fall.  The  lower  camp  was  abandoned  in  or 
der  to  enlarge  the  range  nearly  one  third,  and  after 
providing  for  the  wants  of  the  men,  I  rode  away  to 
the  southeast  to  intercept  the  Chisholm  trail  where 
it  crossed  the  Kansas  line  south  of  Wichita.  The 
town  of  Caldwell  afterward  sprang  up  on  the  bor 
der,  but  at  this  time  among  drovers  it  was  known 
as  Stone's  Store,  a  trading-post  conducted  by  Cap 
tain  Stone,  afterward  a  cowman,  and  already  men 
tioned  in  these  memoirs.  Several  herds  had  already 


A  PROSPEROUS  YEAR  185 

passed  on  my  arrival ;  I  watched  the  trail,  meeting 
every  outfit  for  nearly  a  week,  and  finally  George 
Edwards  came  snailing  along.  He  reported  our 
other  cattle  from  seven  to  ten  days  behind,  but 
was  not  aware  that  I  had  an  individual  herd  on 
the  trail.  Edwards  moved  on  to  Wichita,  and  I 
awaited  the  arrival  of  our  second  outfit.  A  brisk 
rivalry  existed  between  the  solicitors  for  Ellsworth 
and  Wichita,  every  man  working  faithfully  for  his 
railroad  or  town,  and  at  night  they  generally  met 
in  social  session  over  a  poker  game.  I  never  played 
a  card  for  money  now,  not  that  my  morals  were  any 
too  good,  but  I  was  married  and  had  partners,  and 
business  generally  absorbed  me  to  such  an  extent 
that  I  neglected  the  game. 

I  met  the  second  herd  at  Pond  Creek,  south  in 
the  Cherokee  Outlet,  and  after  spending  a  night 
with  them  rode  through  to  Wichita  in  a  day  and 
night.  We  went  into  camp  that  year  well  up  the 
Arkansas  River,  as  two  outfits  would  again  hold 
the  four  herds.  Our  second  outfit  arrived  at  the 
chosen  grazing  grounds  on  time,  the  men  were 
instantly  relieved,  and  after  a  good  carouse  in 
town  they  started  home.  The  two  other  herds  came 
in  without  delay,  the  beeves  arriving  on  the  last  of 
the  month.  Barely  half  as  many  cattle  would  arrive 
from  Texas  that  summer,  as  many  former  drovers 
from  that  section  were  bankrupt  on  account  of  the 
panic  of  the  year  before.  Yet  the  market  was  fairly 


186  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

well  supplied  with  offerings  of  wintered  Texans, 
the  two  classes  being  so  distinct  that  there  was 
very  little  competition  between  them.  My  active 
partner  was  on  hand  early,  reporting  a  healthy  in 
quiry  among  former  customers,  all  of  whom  were 
more  than  pleased  with  the  cattle  supplied  them 
the  year  before.  By  being  in  a  position  to  extend 
a  credit  to  reliable  men,  we  were  enabled  to  effect 
sales  where  other  drovers  dared  not  venture. 

Business  opened  early  with  us.  I  sold  fifteen 
hundred  of  my  heaviest  beeves  to  an  army  con 
tractor  from  Wyoming.  My  active  partner  sold  the 
straight  three-year-old  herd  from  Erath  County  to 
an  ex-governor  from  Nebraska,  and  we  delivered 
it  on  the  Republican  River  in  that  State.  Small 
bunches  of  from  three  to  five  hundred  were  sold  to 
farmers,  and  by  the  first  of  August  we  had  our 
holdings  reduced  to  two  herds  in  charge  of  one 
outfit.  When  the  hipping  season  began  with  our 
customers  at  The  Grove,  trade  became  active  with 
us  at  Wichita.  Scarcely  a  week  passed  but  Major 
Hunter  sold  a  thousand  or  more  to  his  neighbors, 
while  I  skirmished  around  in  the  general  market. 
Wrhen  the  outfit  returned  from  the  Republican 
River,  I  took  it  in  charge,  went  down  on  the 
Medicine,  and  cut  out  a  thousand  beeves,  bringing 
them  to  the  railroad  and  shipping  them  to  St. 
Louis.  I  never  saw  fatter  cattle  in  my  life.  When 
we  got  the  returns  from  the  first  consignment,  we 


A  PROSPEROUS   YEAR  187 

shipped  two  trainloads  every  fortnight  until  our 
holdings  on  the  Medicine  were  reduced  to  a  rem 
nant.  A  competent  bookkeeper  was  employed  early 
in  the  year,  and  in  keeping  our  accounts  at  Wich 
ita,  looking  after  our  shipments,  keeping  individual 
interests,  by  brands,  separate  from  the  firm's,  he 
was  about  the  busiest  man  connected  with  the  sum 
mer's  business.  Aside  from  our  drive  of  over  thir 
teen  thousand  head,  we  bought  three  whole  herds, 
retailing  them  in  small  quantities  to  our  customers, 
all  of  which  was  profitable.  I  bought  four  whole 
remudas  on  personal  account,  culled  out  one  hun 
dred  and  fifty  head  and  sold  them  at  a  sacrifice, 
sending  home  the  remaining  two  hundred  saddle 
horses.  I  found  it  much  cheaper  and  more  con 
venient  to  buy  my  supply  of  saddle  stock  at  trail 
terminals  than  at  home.  Once  railroad  connections 
were  in  operation  direct  between  Kansas  and  Texas, 
every  outfit  preferred  to  go  home  by  rail,  but  I  ad 
hered  to  former  methods  for  many  years. 

In  summing  up  the  year's  business,  never  were 
three  partners  more  surprised.  With  a  remnant 
of  nearly  one  hundred  beeves  unfit  for  shipment, 
the  Medicine  River  venture  had  cleared  us  over 
two  hundred  per  cent,  while  the  horses  on  hand 
were  worth  ten  dollars  a  head  more  than  what  they 
had  cost,  owing  to  their  having  wintered  in  the 
North.  The  ten  thousand  trail  cattle  paid  splen 
didly,  while  my  individual  herd  had  sold  out  in 


188  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

a  manner,  leaving  the  stock  cattle  at  home  clear 
velvet.  A  programme  was  outlined  for  enlarging 
our  business  for  the  coming  year,  and  every  dollar 
of  our  profits  was  to  be  reinvested  in  wintering 
and  trailing  cattle  from  Texas.  Next  to  the  last 
shipment,  the  through  outfit  went  home,  taking 
the  extra  two  hundred  saddle  horses  with  it,  the 
final  consignment  being  brought  in  to  Wichita 
for  loading  out  by  our  ranch  help.  The  shipping 
ended  in  October.  My  last  work  of  the  year  was 
the  purchase  of  seven  thousand  three-year-old 
steers,  intended  for  our  Medicine  Kiver  range. 
We  had  intentionally  held  George  Edwards  and 
his  outfit  for  this  purpose,  and  cutting  the  num 
bers  into  two  herds,  the  Medicine  Kiver  lads  led 
off  for  winter  quarters.  We  had  bought  the  cattle 
worth  the  money,  but  not  at  a  sacrifice  like  the 
year  before,  neither  would  we  expect  such  profits. 
It  takes  a  good  nerve,  but  experience  has  taught 
me  that  in  land  and  cattle  the  time  of  the  worst 
depression  is  the  time  to  buy.  Major  Hunter 
accompanied  the  herds  to  their  winter  quarters, 
sending  Edwards  with  his  outfit,  after  their  arrival 
on  the  Medicine,  back  to  Texas,  while  I  took  the 
train  and  reached  home  during  the  first  week  in 
November. 


CHAPTER  XII 
CLEAR  FORK  AND  SHENANDOAH 

I  ARRIVED  home  in  good  time  for  the  fall  work. 
The  first  outfit  relieved  at  Wichita  had  instruc 
tions  to  begin,  immediately  on  reaching  the  ranch, 
a  general  cow-hunt  for  outside  brands.  It  was  pos 
sible  that  a  few  head  might  have  escaped  from  the 
Clear  Fork  range  and  returned  to  their  old  haunts, 
but  these  would  bear  a  tally-mark  distinguishing 
them  from  any  not  gathered  at  the  spring  delivery. 
My  regular  ranch  hands  looked  after  the  three  pur 
chased  brands  adjoining  our  home  range,  but  an 
independent  outfit  had  been  working  the  past  four 
months  gathering  strays  and  remnants  in  localities 
where  I  had  previously  bought  brands.  They  went 
as  far  south  as  Comanche  County  and  picked  up 
nearly  one  hundred  "  Lazy  L's,"  scoured  the  coun 
try  where  I  had  purchased  the  two  brands  in  the 
spring  of  1872,  and  afterward  confined  themselves 
to  ranges  from  which  the  outside  cattle  were  re 
ceived  that  spring.  They  had  made  one  delivery 
on  the  Clear  Fork  of  seven  hundred  head  before  my 
return,  and  were  then  away  on  a  second  cow-hunt. 
On  my  reaching  the  ranch  the  first  contingent 


190  KEED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

of  gathered  cattle  were  under  herd.  They  were  a 
rag-tag  lot,  many  of  them  big  steers,  while  much  of 
the  younger  stuff  was  clear  of  earmark  or  brand 
until  after  their  arrival  at  the  home  corrals.  The 
ranch  help  herded  them  by  day  and  penned  them 
at  night,  but  on  the  arrival  of  the  independent 
outfit  with  another  contingent  of  fifteen  hundred 
the  first  were  freed  and  the  second  put  under  herd. 
Counting  both  bunches,  the  strays  numbered  nearly 
a  thousand  head,  and  cattle  bearing  no  tally-mark 
fully  as  many  more,  while  the  remainder  were  mav 
ericks  and  would  have  paid  the  expenses  of  the 
outfit  for  the  past  four  months.  I  now  had  over 
thirty  thousand  cattle  on  the  Clear  Fork,  holding 
them  in  eleven  brands,  but  decided  thereafter  to  run 
all  the  increase  in  the  original  "44."  This  rule 
had  gone  into  effect  the  fall  previous,  and  I  now 
proposed  to  run  it  on  all  calves  branded.  Never 
before  had  I  felt  the  necessity  of  increasing  my 
holdings  in  land,  but  with  the  number  of  cattle  on 
hand  it  behooved  me  to  possess  a  larger  acreage  of 
the  Clear  Fork  valley.  A  surveyor  was  accordingly 
sent  for,  and  while  the  double  outfit  was  branding 
the  home  calf  crop,  I  located  on  the  west  end  of 
my  range  a  strip  of  land  ten  miles  long  by  five 
wide.  At  the  east  end  of  my  ranch  another  tract 
was  located,  five  by  ten  miles,  running  north  and 
taking  in  all  that  country  around  the  junction  of 
the  Clear  Fork  with  the  mother  Brazos.  This  gave 


CLEAR  FORK  AND   SHENANDOAH     191 

me  one  hundred  and  fifty  sections  of  land,  lying  in 
the  form  of  an  immense  Lazy  L,  and  I  felt  that 
the  expense  was  justified  in  securing  an  ample 
range  for  my  stock  cattle. 

My  calf  crop  that  fall  ran  a  few  over  seven 
thousand  head.  They  were  good  northern  Texas 
calves,  and  it  would  cost  but  a  trifle  to  run  them 
until  they  were  two-year-olds ;  and  if  demand  con 
tinued  in  the  upper  country,  some  day  a  trail  herd 
of  steers  could  easily  be  made  up  from  their  num 
bers.  I  was  beginning  to  feel  rather  proud  of  my 
land  and  cattle;  the  former  had  cost  me  but  a 
small  outlay,  while  the  latter  were  clear  velvet,  as 
I  had  sold  thirty-five  hundred  from  their  increase 
during  the  past  two  years.  Once  the  surveying 
and  branding  was  over,  I  returned  to  the  Edwards 
ranch  for  the  winter.  The  general  outlook  in 
Texas  was  for  the  better ;  quite  a  mileage  of  rail 
road  had  been  built  within  the  State  during  the 
past  year,  and  new  and  prosperous  towns  had 
sprung  up  along  their  lines.  The  political  situation 
had  quieted  down,  and  it  was  generally  admitted 
that  a  Reconstruction  government  could  never 
again  rear  its  head  on  Texas  soil.  The  result  was 
that  confidence  was  slowly  being  restored  among 
the  local  people,  and  the  press  of  the  State  was 
making  a  fight  for  recognition,  all  of  which  augured 
for  a  brighter  future.  Living  on  the  frontier  and 
absent  the  greater  portion  of  the  time,  I  took  little 


192  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

interest  in  local  politics,  yet  could  not  help  but 
feel  that  the  restoration  of  self-government  to  the 
best  elements  of  our  people  would  in  time  reflect 
on  the  welfare  of  the  State.  Since  my  advent  in 
Texas  I  had  been  witness  to  the  growth  of  Fort 
Worth  from  a  straggling  village  in  the  spring 
of  1866  to  quite  a  pretentious  town  in  the  fall  of 
1874. 

Ever  since  the  partnership  was  formed  I  had 
been  aware  of  and  had  fostered  the  political  ambi 
tions  of  the  firm's  silent  member.  He  had  been 
prominently  identified  with  the  State  of  Kansas 
since  it  was  a  territory,  had  held  positions  of  trust, 
and  had  been  a  representative  in  Congress,  and  all 
three  of  us  secretly  hoped  to  see  him  advanced  to 
the  United  States  Senate.  We  had  fully  discussed 
the  matter  on  various  occasions,  and  as  the  fall 
elections  had  gone  favorably,  the  present  was  con 
sidered  the  opportune  time  to  strike.  The  firm 
mutually  agreed  to  stand  the  expense  of  the  can 
vass,  which  was  estimated  on  a  reasonable  basis, 
and  the  campaign  opened  with  a  blare  of  trum 
pets.  Assuming  the  role  of  a  silent  partner,  I  had 
reports  furnished  me  regularly,  and  it  soon  devel 
oped  that  our  estimate  on  the  probable  expense 
was  too  low.  We  had  boldly  entered  the  canvass, 
our  man  was  worthy,  and  I  wrote  back  instructing 
my  partners  to  spare  no  expense  in  winning  the 
fight.  There  were  a  number  of  candidates  in  the 


CLEAR   FORK   AND   SHENANDOAH    193 

race  and  the  legislature  was  in  session,  when  an 
urgent  letter  reached  me,  urging  my  presence  at 
the  capital  of  Kansas.  The  race  was  narrowing  to 
a  close,  a  personal  consultation  was  urged,  and  I 
hastened  north  as  fast  as  a  relay  of  horses  and 
railroad  trains  could  carry  me.  On  my  arrival  at 
Topeka  the  fight  had  almost  narrowed  to  a  finan 
cial  one,  and  we  questioned  if  the  game  were 
worth  the  candle.  Yet  we  were  already  involved  in 
a  considerable  outlay,  and  the  consultation  resulted 
in  our  determination  to  win,  which  we  did,  but  at 
an  expense  of  a  little  over  four  times  the  original 
estimate,  which,  however,  afterward  proved  a  splen 
did  investment. 

I  now  had  hopes  that  we  might  enlarge  our  op 
erations  in  handling  government  contracts.  Major 
Hunter  saw  possibilities  along  the  same  line,  and 
our  silent  partner  was  awakened  to  the  importance 
of  maintaining  friendly  relations  with  the  Interior 
and  War  departments,  gathering  all  the  details  in 
contracting  beef  with  the  government  for  its  Indian 
agencies  and  army  posts  in  the  West.  Up  to  date 
this  had  been  a  lucrative  field  which  only  a  few 
Texas  drovers  had  ventured  into,  most  of  the 
contractors  being  Northern  and  Eastern  men,  and 
usually  buying  the  cattle  with  which  to  fill  the 
contracts  near  the  point  of  delivery.  I  was  impa 
tient  to  get  into  this  trade,  as  the  Indian  deliveries 
generally  took  cows,  and  the  army  heavy  beef,  two 


194  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

grades  of  cattle  that  at  present  our  firm  had  no 
certain  demand  for.  Also  the  market  was  grad 
ually  moving  west  from  Wichita,  and  it  was  only  a 
question  of  a  few  years  until  the  settlements  of 
eastern  Kansas  would  cut  us  off  from  our  estab 
lished  trade  around  The  Grove.  I  had  seen  Abilene 
pass  away  as  a  market,  Wichita  was  doomed  by  the 
encroachments  of  agriculture,  and  it  behooved  us 
to  be  alert  for  a  new  outlet. 

I  made  up  my  mind  to  buy  more  land  scrip.  Not 
that  there  had  been  any  perceptible  improvement 
in  wild  lands,  but  the  general  outlook  justified  its 
purchase.  My  agent  at  Austin  reported  scrip  to  be 
had  in  ordinary  quantities  at  former  prices,  and 
suggested  that  I  supply  myself  fully,  as  the  new 
administration  was  an  economical  one,  and  once  the 
great  flood  of  certificates  issued  by  the  last  Recon 
struction  regime  were  absorbed,  an  advance  in  land 
scrip  was  anticipated.  I  accordingly  bought  three 
hundred  sections  more,  hardly  knowing  what  to  do 
with  it,  yet  I  knew  there  was  an  empire  of  fine 
grazing  country  between  my  present  home  and  the 
Pecos  River.  If  ever  the  Comanches  were  brought 
under  subjection  there  would  be  ranches  and  room 
for  all ;  and  our  babies  were  principally  boys. 

Major  Hunter  came  down  earlier  than  usual. 
He  reported  a  clear,  cold  winter  on  the  Medicine 
and  no  serious  drift  of  cattle,  and  expressed  the 
belief  that  we  would  come  through  with  a  loss  not 


CLEAR  FORK  AND   SHENANDOAH     195 

exceeding  one  per  cent.  This  was  encouraging,  as 
it  meant  fat  cattle  next  fall,  fit  for  any  market  in 
the  country.  It  was  yet  too  early  to  make  any  move 
towards  putting  up  herds  for  the  trail,  and  we  took 
train  and  went  down  the  country  as  far  as  Austin. 
There  was  always  a  difference  in  cattle  prices,  run 
ning  from  one  to  two  dollars  a  head,  between  the 
northern  and  southern  parts  of  the  State.  Both  of 
us  were  anxious  to  acquaint  ourselves  with  the  dif 
ferent  grades,  and  made  stops  in  several  intervening 
counties,  looking  at  cattle  on  the  range  and  pricing 
them.  We  spent  a  week  at  the  capital  city  and  met 
all  the  trail  drovers  living  there,  many  of  whom 
expected  to  put  up  herds  for  that  year  southeast  on 
the  Colorado  River.  "  Shanghai  "  Pierce  had  for 
some  time  been  a  prominent  figure  in  the  markets 
of  Abilene  and  Wichita,  driving  herds  of  his  own 
from  the  extreme  coast  country.  But  our  market 
required  a  better  quality  than  coasters  and  Mexican 
cattle,  and  we  turned  back  up  the  country.  Before 
leaving  the  capital,  Major  Hunter  and  I  had  a  long 
talk  with  my  merchant  friend  over  the  land  scrip 
market,  and  the  latter  urged  its  purchase  at  once, 
if  wanted,  as  the  issue  afloat  was  being  gradually 
absorbed.  Already  there  had  been  a  noticeable  ad 
vance  in  the  price,  and  my  partner  gave  me  no 
peace  until  I  bought,  at  eighteen  dollars  a  section, 
two  hundred  certificates  more.  Its  purchase  was 
making  an  inroad  on  my  working  capital,  but  the 


196  KEED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

major  frowned  on  my  every  protest,  and  I  yielded 
out  of  deference  to  his  superior  judgment. 

Returning,  we  stopped  in  Bell  County,  where  we 
contracted  for  fifteen  thousand  two  and  three  year 
old  steers.  They  were  good  prairie-raised  cattle,  and 
we  secured  them  at  a  dollar  a  head  less  than  the 
prices  prevailing  in  the  first  few  counties  south  of 
Red  River.  Major  Hunter  remained  behind,  ar 
ranging  his  banking  facilities,  and  I  returned  home 
after  my  outfits.  Before  leaving  Bell  County,  I  left 
word  that  we  could  use  fifty  good  men  for  the  trail, 
but  they  would  have  to  come  recommended  by  the 
ranchmen  with  whom  we  were  dealing.  We  expected 
to  make  up  five  herds,  and  the  cattle  were  to  be 
ready  for  delivery  to  us  between  the  15th  and  30th 
of  March.  I  hastened  home  and  out  to  the  ranch, 
gathered  our  saddle  stock,  outfitted  wagons,  and 
engaged  all  my  old  foremen  and  twenty  trusty  men, 
and  we  started  with  a  remuda  of  five  hundred  horses 
to  begin  the  operations  of  the  coming  summer.  Re 
ceiving  cattle  with  me  was  an  old  story  by  this  time, 
and  frequently  matters  came  to  a  standstill  between 
the  sellers  and  ourselves.  We  paid  no  attention  to 
former  customs  of  the  country ;  all  cattle  had  to 
come  up  full-aged  or  go  into  the  younger  class, 
while  inferior  or  knotty  stags  were  turned  back  as 
not  wanted.  Scarcely  a  day  passed  but  there  was 
more  or  less  dispute;  but  we  proposed  paying  for 
them,  and  insisted  that  all  cattle  tendered  must 


CLEAR  FORK  AND  SHENANDOAH  197 

come  up  to  the  specifications  of  the  contract.  We 
stood  firm,  and  after  the  first  two  herds  were  re 
ceived,  all  trouble  on  that  score  passed,  and  in 
making  up  the  last  three  herds  there  was  actually  a 
surplus  of  cattle  tendered.  We  used  a  road  brand 
that  year  on  all  steers  purchased,  and  the  herds 
moved  out  from  two  to  three  days  apart,  the  last 
two  being  made  up  in  Coryell,  the  adjoining  county 
north. 

George  Edwards  had  charge  of  the  rear  herd. 
There  were  fourteen  days  between  the  first  and  the 
last  starts,  a  fortnight  of  hard  work,  and  we  fre 
quently  received  from  ten  to  thirty  miles  distant 
from  the  branding  pens.  I  rode  almost  night  and 
day,  and  Edwards  likewise,  while  Major  Hunter 
kept  all  the  accounts  and  settled  with  the  sellers. 
As  fast  as  one  herd  was  ready,  it  moved  out  under 
a  foreman  and  fourteen  men,  one  hundred  saddle 
horses,  and  a  well-stocked  commissary.  We  did  our 
banking  at  Belton,  the  county  seat,  and  after  the 
last  herd  started  we  returned  to  town  and  received 
quite  an  ovation  from  the  business  men  of  the 
village.  We  had  invested  a  little  over  one  hundred 
and  fifty  thousand  dollars  in  cattle  in  that  com 
munity,  and  a  banquet  was  even  suggested  in  our 
honor  by  some  of  the  leading  citizens.  Most  of  the 
contracts  were  made  with  merchants,  many  of  whom 
did  not  own  a  hoof  of  cattle,  but  depended  on  their 
customers  to  deliver  the  steers.  The  business  in- 


198  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

terests  of  the  town  were  anxious  to  have  us  return 
next  year.  We  declined  the  proposed  dinner,  as 
neither  Major  Hunter  nor  myself  would  have  made 
a  presentable  guest.  A  month  or  more  had  passed 
since  I  had  left  the  ranch  on  the  Clear  Fork,  the 
only  clothes  I  had  were  on  my  back,  and  they  were 
torn  in  a  dozen  places  from  running  cattle  in  the 
brush.  My  partner  had  been  living  in  cow-camps 
for  the  past  three  weeks,  and  preferred  to  be  ex 
cused  from  receiving  any  social  attentions.  So  we 
thanked  our  friends  and  started  for  the  railroad. 

Major  Hunter  went  through  to  The  Grove,  while 
I  stopped  at  Fort  Worth.  A  buckboard  from  home 
was  awaiting  me,  and  the  next  morning  I  was  at 
the  Edwards  ranch.  A  relay  team  was  harnessed 
in,  and  after  counting  the  babies  I  started  for  the 
Clear  Fork.  By  early  evening  I  was  in  consultation 
with  my  ranch  foreman,  as  it  was  my  intention  to 
drive  an  individual  herd  if  everything  justified  the 
venture.  I  never  saw  the  range  on  the  Clear  Fork 
look  better,  and  the  books  showed  that  we  could 
easily  gather  two  thousand  twos  and  threes,  while 
the  balance  of  the  herd  could  be  made  up  of  dry 
and  barren  cows.  All  we  lacked  was  about  thirty 
horses,  and  my  ranch  hands  were  anxious  to  go  up 
the  trail ;  but  after  riding  the  range  one  day  I  de 
cided  that  it  would  be  a  pity  to  disturb  the  pastoral 
serenity  of  the  valley.  It  was  fairly  dotted  with  my 
own  cattle ;  month  -  old  calves  were  playing  in 


CLEAR  FORK  AND  SHENANDOAH  199 

groups,  while  my  horse  frequently  shied  at  new 
born  ones,  lying  like  fawns  in  the  tall  grass.  A 
round-up  at  that  time  meant  the  separation  of 
mothers  from  their  offspring  and  injury  to  cows 
approaching  maternity,  and  I  decided  that  no  com 
mercial  necessity  demanded  the  sacrifice.  Then 
again  it  seemed  a  short-sighted  policy  to  send  half- 
matured  steers  to  market,  when  no  man  could  bring 
the  same  animals  to  a  full  development  as  cheaply 
as  I  could.  Barring  contagious  diseases,  cattle  are 
the  healthiest  creatures  that  walk  the  earth,  and 
even  on  an  open  range  seldom  if  ever  does  one  vol 
untarily  forsake  its  birthplace. 

I  spent  two  weeks  on  the  ranch  and  could  have 
stayed  the  summer  through,  for  I  love  cattle.  Our 
lead  herd  was  due  on  the  Kansas  state  line  early 
in  May,  so  remaining  at  the  Edwards  ranch  until 
the  last  possible  hour,  I  took  train  and  reached 
Wichita,  where  my  active  partner  was  awaiting  me. 
He  had  just  returned  from  the  Medicine  River,  and 
reported  everything  serene.  He  had  made  arrange 
ments  to  have  the  men  attend  all  the  country  round 
ups  within  one  hundred  miles  of  our  range.  Sev 
eral  herds  had  already  reached  Wichita,  and  the 
next  day  I  started  south  on  horseback  to  meet  our 
cattle  at  Caldwell  on  the  line,  or  at  Pond  Creek  in 
the  Cherokee  Outlet.  It  was  going  to  be  difficult 
to  secure  range  for  herds  within  fifteen  miles  of 
Wichita,  and  the  opinion  seemed  general  that  this 


200  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

would  be  the  last  year  that  town  could  hope  to  hold 
any  portion  of  the  Texas  cattle  trade.  On  arriving 
at  Pond  Creek  I  found  that  fully  half  the  herds 
were  turning  up  that  stream,  heading  for  Great 
Bend,  Ellsworth,  Ellis,  and  Nickerson,  all  markets 
within  the  State  of  Kansas.  The  year  before  nearly 
one  third  the  drive  had  gone  to  the  two  first-named 
points,  and  now  other  towns  were  offering  induce 
ments  and  bidding  for  a  share  of  the  present  cattle 
exodus. 

Our  lead  herd  arrived  without  an  incident  en 
route.  The  second  one  came  in  promptly,  both 
passing  on  and  picking  their  way  through  the 
border  settlements  to  Wichita.  I  waited  until  the 
third  one  put  in  an  appearance,  leaving  orders  for 
it  and  the  two  rear  ones  to  camp  on  some  conven 
ient  creek  in  the  Outlet  near  Caldwell.  Arrange 
ments  were  made  with  Captain  Stone  for  supplying 
the  outfits,  and  I  hurried  on  to  overtake  the  lead 
herds,  then  nearing  Wichita.  An  ample  range  was 
found  but  twenty  miles  up  the  Arkansas  Kiver,  and 
the  third  day  all  the  Bell  County  men  in  the  two 
outfits  were  sent  home  by  train.  The  market  was 
much  the  same  as  the  year  before:  one  herd  of 
three  thousand  two-year-olds  was  our  largest  indi 
vidual  sale.  Early  in  August  the  last  herd  was 
brought  from  the  state  line  and  the  through  help 
reduced  to  two  outfits,  one  holding  cattle  at  Wich 
ita  and  the  other  bringing  in  shipments  of  beeves 


CLEAR   FORK  AND  SHENANDOAH    201 

from  the  Medicine  River  range.  The  latter  were 
splendid  cattle,  fatted  to  a  finish  for  grass  animals, 
and  brought  top  prices  in  the  different  markets 
to  which  they  were  consigned.  Omitting  details, 
I  will  say  it  was  an  active  year,  as  we  bought  and 
sold  fully  as  many  more  as  our  drive  amounted  to, 
while  I  added  to  my  stock  of  saddle  horses  an  even 
three  hundred  head. 

An  amusing  incident  occurred  with  one  of  my 
men  while  holding  cattle  that  fall  at  Wichita.  The 
boys  were  in  and  out  of  town  frequently,  and  one 
of  them  returned  to  camp  one  evening  and  informed 
me  that  he  wanted  to  quit  work,  as  he  intended  to 
return  to  Wichita  and  kill  a  man.  He  was  a  good 
hand  and  I  tried  to  persuade  him  out  of  the  idea, 
but  he  insisted  that  it  was  absolutely  necessary  to 
preserve  his  honor.  I  threatened  to  refuse  him  a 
horse,  but  seeing  that  menace  and  persuasion  were 
useless,  I  ordered  him  to  pick  my  holdings  of  saddle 
stock,  gave  him  his  wages  due,  and  told  him  to  be 
sure  and  shoot  first.  He  bade  us  all  good-by,  and 
a  chum  of  his  went  with  him.  About  an  hour  be 
fore  daybreak  they  returned  and  awoke  me,  when 
the  aggrieved  boy  said  :  "  Mr.  Anthony,  I  did  n't 
kill  him.  No,  I  did  n't  kill  him.  He  's  a  good  man. 
You  bet  he  's  a  game  one.  Oh,  he  's  a  good  man  all 
right."  That  morning  when  I  awoke  both  lads 
were  out  on  herd,  and  I  had  an  early  appointment 
to  meet  parties  in  town.  Major  Hunter  gave  me 


202  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

the  story  immediately  on  my  arrival.  The  boys 
had  located  the  offender  in  a  store,  and  he  antici 
pated  the  fact  that  they  were  on  his  trail.  As  our 
men  entered  the  place,  the  enemy  stepped  from  be 
hind  a  pile  of  clothing  with  two  six-shooters  leveled 
in  their  faces,  and  ordered  a  clerk  to  relieve  the 
pair  of  their  pistols,  which  was  promptly  done. 
Once  the  particulars  were  known  at  camp,  it  was 
looked  upon  as  a  good  joke  on  the  lad,  and  when 
ever  he  was  asked  what  he  thought  of  Mr.  Blank, 
his  reply  invariably  was,  "  He's  a  good  man." 

The  drive  that  year  to  the  different  markets  in 
Kansas  amounted  to  about  five  hundred  thousand 
cattle.  One  half  this  number  were  handled  at 
Wichita,  the  surrounding  country  absorbing  them 
to  such  an  extent  that  when  it  came  time  to  re 
stock  our  Medicine  River  range  I  was  compelled 
to  go  to  Great  Bend  to  secure  the  needed  cattle. 
All  saddle  horses,  both  purchased  and  my  own  re- 
mudas,  with  wagons,  were  sent  to  our  winter  camps 
by  the  shipping  crew,  so  that  the  final  start  for 
Texas  would  be  made  from  the  Medicine  River.  It 
was  the  last  of  October  that  the  last  six  trains  of 
beeves  were  brought  in  to  the  railroad  for  ship 
ment,  the  season's  work  drawing  to  an  end.  Mean 
while  I  had  closed  contracts  on  ten  thousand  three- 
year-old  steers  at "  The  Bend,"  so  as  fast  as  the  three 
outfits  were  relieved  of  their  consignment  of  beeves 
they  pulled  out  up  the  Arkansas  River  to  receive 


CLEAR  FORK  AND  SHENANDOAH  203 

the  last  cattle  of  the  year.  It  was  nearly  one  hun 
dred  miles  from  Wichita,  and  on  the  arrival  of  the 
shipping  crews  the  herds  were  received  and  started 
south  for  their  winter  range.  Major  Hunter  and  I 
accompanied  the  herds  to  the  Medicine,  and  within 
a  week  after  reaching  the  range  the  two  through 
outfits  started  home  with  five  wagons  and  eight 
hundred  saddle  horses. 

It  was  the  latter  part  of  November  when  we  left 
our  winter  camps  and  returned  to  The  Grove  for 
the  annual  settlement.  Our  silent  partner  was 
present,  and  we  broke  the  necks  of  a  number  of 
champagne  bottles  in  properly  celebrating  the  suc 
cess  of  the  year's  work.  The  wintered  cattle  had 
cleared  the  Dutchman's  one  per  cent,  while  every 
hoof  in  the  through  and  purchased  herds  was  a  fine 
source  of  profit.  Congress  would  convene  within 
a  week,  and  our  silent  partner  suggested  that  all 
three  of  us  go  down  to  Washington  and  attend  the 
opening  exercises.  He  had  already  looked  into  the 
contracting  of  beef  to  the  government,  and  was 
particularly  anxious  to  have  my  opinion  on  a  num 
ber  of  contracts  to  be  let  the  coming  winter.  It 
had  been  ten  years  since  I  left  my  old  home  in  the 
Shenandoah  Valley,  my  parents  were  still  living, 
and  all  I  asked  was  time  enough  to  write  a  letter  to 
my  wife,  and  buy  some  decent  clothing.  The  trio 
started  in  good  time  for  the  opening  of  Congress, 
but  once  we  sighted  the  Potomac  River  the  old 


204  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

home  hunger  came  on  me  and  I  left  the  train  at 
Harper's  Ferry.  My  mother  knew  and  greeted  me 
just  as  if  I  had  left  home  that  morning  on  an  errand, 
and  had  now  returned.  My  father  was  breaking 
with  years,  yet  had  a  mental  alertness  that  was  re 
markable  and  a  commercial  instinct  that  understood 
the  value  of  a  Texas  cow  or  a  section  of  land  scrip. 
The  younger  members  of  the  family  gathered  from 
their  homes  to  meet  "  Texas  "  Anthony,  and  for 
ten  continuous  days  I  did  nothing  but  answer  ques 
tions,  running  from  the  color  of  the  baby's  eyes  to 
why  we  did  not  drive  the  fifteen  thousand  cattle  in 
one  herd,  or  how  big  a  section  of  country  would 
one  thousand  certificates  of  land  scrip  cover.  My 
visit  was  broken  by  the  necessity  of  conferring  with 
my  partners,  so,  promising  to  spend  Christmas 
with  my  mother,  I  was  excused  until  that  date. 

At  the  War  and  Interior  departments  I  made 
many  friends.  I  understood  cattle  so  thoroughly 
that  there  was  no  feature  of  a  delivery  to  the  gov 
ernment  that  embarrassed  me  in  the  least.  A  list  of 
contracts  to  be  let  from  each  department  was  cour 
teously  furnished  us,  but  not  wishing  to  scatter  our 
business  too  wide,  we  submitted  bids  for  six  Indian 
contracts  and  four  for  delivery  to  army  posts  on  the 
upper  Missouri  River.  Two  of  the  latter  were  to  be 
northern  wintered  cattle,  and  we  had  them  on  the 
Medicine  River ;  but  we  also  had  a  sure  market  on 
them,  and  it  was  a  matter  of  indifference  whether 


CLEAR  FORK  AND  SHENANDOAH  205 

we  secured  them  or  not.  The  Indian  contracts  called 
for  cows,  and  I  was  anxious  to  secure  as  many 
as  possible,  as  it  meant  a  market  for  the  aging  she 
stuff  on  my  ranch.  Heretofore  this  class  had  ful 
filled  their  mission  in  perpetuating  their  kind,  had 
lived  their  day,  and  the  weeds  grew  rankly  where 
their  remains  enriched  the  soil.  The  bids  would 
not  be  opened  until  the  middle  of  January,  and  we 
should  have  notice  at  once  if  fortunate  in  securing 
any  of  the  awards.  The  holiday  season  was  ap 
proaching,  Major  Hunter  was  expected  at  home, 
and  the  firm  separated  for  the  time  being. 


CHAPTER  XIII 
THE  CENTENNIAL  YEAR 

I  RETURNED  to  Texas  early  in  January.  Quite  a 
change  had  come  over  the  situation  since  my  leav 
ing  home  the  spring  before.  Except  on  the  fron 
tier,  business  was  booming  in  the  new  towns,  while 
a  regular  revolution  had  taken  place  within  the  past 
month  in  land  values.  The  cheapness  of  wild  lands 
had  attracted  outside  capital,  resulting  in  a  syndi 
cate  being  formed  by  Northern  capitalists  to  buy  up 
the  outstanding  issue  of  land  scrip.  The  movement 
had  been  handled  cautiously,  and  had  possibly 
been  in  active  operation  for  a  year  or  more,  as  its 
methods  were  conducted  with  the  utmost  secrecy. 
Options  had  been  taken  on  all  scrip  voted  to  corpo 
rations  in  the  State  and  still  in  their  possession, 
agents  of  the  syndicate  were  stationed  at  all  centres 
where  any  amount  was  afloat,  and  on  a  given  day 
throughout  the  State  every  certificate  on  the  mar 
ket  was  purchased.  The  next  morning  land  scrip 
was  worth  fifty  dollars  a  section,  and  on  my  return 
one  hundred  dollars  a  certificate  was  being  freely 
bid,  while  every  surveyor  in  the  State  was  work 
ing  night  and  day  locating  lands  for  individual 
holders  of  scrip. 


THE   CENTENNIAL   YEAR  207 

This  condition  of  affairs  was  largely  augmented 
by  a  boom  in  sheep.  San  Antonio  was  the  leading 
wool  market  in  the  State,  many  clips  having  sold 
as  high  as  forty  cents  a  pound  for  several  years 
past  on  the  streets  of  that  city.  Free  range  and  the 
high  price  of  wool  was  inviting  every  man  and  his 
cousin  to  come  to  Texas  and  make  his  fortune. 
Money  was  feverish  for  investment  in  sheep,  flock- 
masters  were  buying  land  on  which  to  run  their 
bands,  and  a  sheepman  was  an  envied  personage. 
Up  to  this  time  there  had  been  little  or  no  occasion 
to  own  the  land  on  which  the  immense  flocks  grazed 
the  year  round,  yet  under  existing  cheap  prices  of 
land  nearly  all  the  watercourses  in  the  immediate 
country  had  been  taken  up.  Personally  I  was  dum- 
founded  at  the  sudden  and  unexpected  change  of 
affairs,  and  what  nettled  me  most  was  that  all  the 
land  adjoining  my  ranch  had  been  filed  on  within  the 
past  month.  The  Clear  Fork  valley  all  the  way  up 
to  Fort  Griffin  had  been  located,  while  every  va 
cant  acre  on  the  mother  Brazos,  as  far  north  as  Bel- 
knap,  was  surveyed  and  recorded.  I  was  mortified 
to  think  that  I  had  been  asleep,  but  then  the  change 
had  come  like  a  thief  in  the  night.  My  wife's 
trunk  was  half  full  of  scrip,  I  had  had  a  surveyor 
on  the  ground  only  a  year  before,  and  now  the  op 
portunity  had  passed. 

But  my  disappointment  was  my  wife's  delight,  as 
there  was  no  longer  any  necessity  for  keeping  secret 


208  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

our  holdings  in  land  scrip.  The  little  tin  trunk 
held  a  snug  fortune,  and  next  to  the  babies,  my 
wife  took  great  pride  in  showing  visitors  the  beau 
tiful  lithographed  certificates.  My  ambition  was 
land  and  cattle,  but  now  that  the  scrip  had  a  cash 
value,  my  wife  took  as  much  pride  in  those  vouchers 
as  if  the  land  had  been  surveyed,  recorded,  and 
covered  with  our  own  herds.  I  had  met  so  many 
reverses  that  I  was  grateful  for  any  smile  of  for 
tune,  and  bore  my  disappointment  with  becoming 
grace.  My  ranch  had  branded  over  eight  thousand 
calves  that  fall,  and  as  long  as  it  remained  an  open 
range  I  had  room  for  my  holdings  of  cattle. 
There  was  no  question  but  that  the  public  domain 
was  bountiful,  and  if  it  were  necessary  I  could  go 
farther  west  and  locate  a  new  ranch.  But  it  secretly 
grieved  me  to  realize  that  what  I  had  so  fondly 
hoped  for  had  come  without  warning  and  found  me 
unprepared.  I  might  as  well  have  held  title  to  half 
a  million  acres  of  the  Clear  Fork  Valley  as  a  paltry 
hundred  and  fifty  sections. 

Little  time  was  given  me  to  lament  over  spilt 
milk.  On  the  return  from  my  first  trip  to  the  Clear 
Fork,  reports  from  the  War  and  Interior  depart 
ments  were  awaiting  me.  Two  contracts  to  the 
army  and  four  to  Indian  agencies  had  been  awarded 
us,  all  of  which  could  be  filled  with  through  cat 
tle.  The  military  allotments  would  require  six 
thousand  heavy  beeves  for  delivery  on  the  upper 


THE   CENTENNIAL   YEAR  209 

Missouri  River  in  Dakota,  while  the  nation's  wards 
would  require  thirteen  thousand  cows  at  four  dif 
ferent  agencies  in  the  Indian  Territory.  My  active 
partner  was  due  in  Fort  Worth  within  a  week, 
while  bonds  for  the  faithful  fulfillment  of  our  con 
tracts  would  be  executed  by  our  silent  partner  at 
Washington,  D.  C.  These  awards  meant  an  active 
year  to  our  firm,  and  besides  there  was  our  estab 
lished  trade  around  The  Grove,  which  we  had  no 
intention  of  abandoning.  The  government  was 
a  sure  market,  and  as  long  as  a  healthy  demand 
continued  in  Kansas  for  young  cattle,  the  firm  of 
Hunter,  Anthony  &  Co.  would  be  found  actively 
engaged  in  supplying  the  same. 

Major  Hunter  arrived  under  a  high  pressure  of 
enthusiasm.  By  appointment  we  met  in  Fort  Worth, 
and  after  carefully  reviewing  the  situation  we 
took  train  and  continued  on  south  to  San  Antonio. 
I  had  seen  a  herd  of  beeves,  a  few  years  before, 
from  the  upper  Nueces  River,  and  remembered 
them  as  good  heavy  cattle.  There  were  two  dollars 
a  head  difference,  even  in  ages  among  younger 
stock,  between  the  lower  and  upper  counties  in  the 
State,  and  as  it  was  pounds  quantity  that  we 
wanted  for  the  army,  it  was  our  intention  to  look 
over  the  cattle  along  the  Nueces  River  before  buy 
ing  our  supply  of  beeves.  We  met  a  number  of 
acquaintances  in  San  Antonio,  all  of  whom  recom 
mended  us  to  go  west  if  in  search  of  heavy  cattle, 


210  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

and  a  few  days  later  we  reached  Uvalde  County. 
This  was  the  section  from  which  the  beeves  had 
come  that  impressed  me  so  favorably ;  I  even  re 
membered  the  ranch  brands,  and  without  any  diffi 
culty  we  located  the  owners,  finding  them  anxious 
to  meet  buyers  for  their  mature  surplus  cattle. 
We  spent  a  week  along  the  Frio,  Leona,  and 
Nueces  rivers,  and  closed  contracts  on  sixty-one 
hundred  five  to  seven  year  old  beeves.  The  cattle 
were  not  as  good  a  quality  as  prairie-raised  north 
Texas  stock,  but  the  pounds  avoirdupois  were 
there,  the  defects  being  in  their  mongrel  colors, 
length  of  legs,  and  breadth  of  horns,  heritages 
from  the  original  Spanish  stock.  Otherwise  they 
were  tall  as  a  horse,  clean-limbed  as  a  deer,  and 
active  on  their  feet,  and  they  looked  like  fine 
walkers.  I  estimated  that  two  bits  a  head  would 
drive  them  to  Eed  Eiver,  and  as  we  bought  them 
at  three  dollars  a  head  less  than  prevailing  prices 
for  the  same-aged  beeves  north  of  or  parallel  to 
Fort  Worth,  we  were  well  repaid  for  our  time 
and  trouble. 

We  returned  to  San  Antonio  and  opened  a  bank 
account.  The  15th  of  March  was  agreed  on  to 
receive.  Two  remudas  of  horses  would  have  to  be 
secured,  wagons  fitted  up,  and  outfits  engaged. 
Heretofore  I  had  furnished  all  horses  for  trail 
work,  but  now,  with  our  enlarging  business,  it 
would  be  necessary  to  buy  others,  which  would  be 


THE   CENTENNIAL   YEAR  211 

done  at  the  expense  of  the  firm.  George  Edwards 
was  accordingly  sent  for,  and  met  us  at  Waco. 
He  was  furnished  a  letter  of  credit  on  our  San 
Antonio  bank,  and  authorized  to  buy  and  equip 
two  complete  outfits  for  the  Uvalde  beeves. 
Edwards  was  a  good  judge  of  horses,  there  was  an 
abundance  of  saddle  stock  in  the  country,  and  he 
was  instructed  to  buy  not  less  than  one  hundred 
and  twenty-five  head  for  each  remuda,  to  outfit  his 
wagons  with  four-mule  teams,  and  announce  us  as 
willing  to  engage  fourteen  men  to  the  herd.  Once 
these  details  were  arranged  for,  Major  Hunter 
and  myself  bought  two  good  horses  and  struck 
west  for  Cory  ell  County,  where  we  had  put  up 
two  herds  the  spring  before.  Our  return  met  with 
a  flood  of  offerings,  prices  of  the  previous  year 
still  prevailed,  and  we  let  contracts  for  sixty-five 
hundred  three-year-old  steers  and  an  equal  num 
ber  of  dry  and  barren  cows.  We  paid  seven  dol 
lars  a  head  for  the  latter,  and  in  order  to  avoid 
any  dispute  at  the  final  tender  it  was  stipulated 
that  the  offerings  must  be  in  good  flesh,  not  under 
five  nor  over  eight  years  old,  full  average  in  weight, 
and  showing  no  evidence  of  pregnancy.  Under 
local  customs,  "  a  cow  was  a  cow,"  and  we  had  to 
be  specific. 

We  did  our  banking  at  Waco  for  the  Coryell 
herds.  Hastening  north,  our  next  halt  was  in 
Hood  County,  where  we  bought  thirty-three  htm- 


212  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

dred  two-year-old  steers  and  three  thousand  and 

odd  cows.    This  completed  eight  herds  secured 

three  of  young  steers  for  the  agricultural  regions, 
and  five  intended  for  government  delivery.  We 
still  lacked  one  for  the  Indian  Bureau,  and  as  I 
offered  to  make  it  up  from  my  holdings,  and  on  a 
credit,  my  active  partner  consented.  I  was  putting 
in  every  dollar  at  my  command,  my  partners  were 
borrowing  freely  at  home,  and  we  were  pulling 
together  like  a  six-mule  team  to  make  a  success 
of  the  coming  summer's  work.  It  was  now  the 
middle  of  February,  and  my  active  partner  went 
to  Fort  Worth,  where  I  did  my  banking,  to  com 
plete  his  financial  arrangements,  while  I  returned 
to  the  ranch  to  organize  the  forces  for  the  coming 
campaign.  All  the  latter  were  intrusted  to  me, 
and  while  I  had  my  old  foremen  at  my  beck  and 
call,  it  was  necessary  to  employ  five  or  six  new 
ones.  With  our  deliveries  scattered  from  the  Indian 
Territory  to  the  upper  Missouri  River,  as  well  as 
our  established  trade  at  The  Grove,  two  of  us  could 
not  cover  the  field,  and  George  Edwards  had  been 
decided  on  as  the  third  and  trusted  man.  In  a 
practical  way  he  was  a  better  cowman  than  I  was, 
and  with  my  active  Yankee  partner  for  a  running 
mate  they  made  a  team  that  would  take  care  of 
themselves  in  any  cow  country. 

A  good  foreman  is  a  very  important  man  in  trail 
work.    The  drover  or  firm  may  or  may  not  be  prac- 


THE   CENTENNIAL   YEAR  213 

tical  cowmen,  but  the  executive  in  the  field  must 
be  the  master  of  any  possible  situation  that  may  arise, 
combining  the  qualities  of  generalship  with  the 
caution  of  an  explorer.  He  must  be  a  hail-fellow 
among  his  men,  for  he  must  command  by  deserving 
obedience  ;  he  must  know  the  inmost  thoughts  of 
his  herd,  noting  every  sign  of  alarm  or  distress, 
and  willingly  sacrifice  any  personal  comfort  in  the 
interest  of  his  cattle  or  outfit.  I  had  a  few  such 
men,  boys  who  had  grown  up  in  my  employ,  several 
of  whom  I  would  rather  trust  in  a  dangerous  sit 
uation  with  a  herd  than  take  active  charge  myself. 
No  concern  was  given  for  their  morals,  but  they 
must  be  capable,  trustworthy,  and  honest,  as  they 
frequently  handled  large  sums  of  money.  All  my 
old  foremen  swore  by  me,  not  one  of  them  would 
accept  a  similar  situation  elsewhere,  and  in  select 
ing  the  extra  trail  bosses  their  opinion  was  valued 
and  given  due  consideration. 

Not  having  driven  anything  from  my  ranch  the 
year  before,  a  fine  herd  of  twos,  threes,  and  four- 
year-old  steers  could  easily  be  made  up.  It  was 
possible  that  a  tenth  and  individual  herd  might  be 
sent  up  the  country,  but  no  movement  to  that 
effect  was  decided  on,  and  my  regular  ranch  hands 
had  orders  only  to  throw  in  on  the  home  range  and 
gather  outside  steer  cattle  and  dry  cows.  I  had 
wintered  all  my  saddle  horses  on  the  Clear  Fork, 
and  once  the  foremen  were  decided  on,  they  repaired 


214  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

to  the  ranch  and  began  outfitting  for  the  start. 
The  Coryell  herds  were  to  be  received  one  week 
later  than  the  beef  cattle,  and  the  outfits  would 
necessarily  have  to  start  in  ample  time  to  meet  us 
on  our  return  from  the  upper  Nueces  River  coun 
try.  The  two  foremen  allotted  to  Hood  County 
would  start  a  week  later  still,  so  that  we  would 
really  move  north  with  the  advance  of  the  season 
in  receiving  the  cattle  under  contract.  Only  a  few 
days  were  required  in  securing  the  necessary  fore 
men,  a  remuda  was  apportioned  to  each,  and  credit 
for  the  commissary  supplies  arranged  for,  the  em 
ployment  of  the  men  being  left  entirely  to  the  trail 
bosses.  Taking  two  of  my  older  foremen  with  me, 
I  started  for  Fort  Worth,  where  an  agreeable  sur 
prise  awaited  me.  We  had  been  underbidden  at 
the  War  Department  on  both  our  proposals  for 
northern  wintered  beeves.  The  fortunate  bidder 
on  one  contract  was  refused  the  award,  —  for  some 
duplicity  in  a  former  transaction,  I  learned  later, 
—  and  the  Secretary  of  War  had  approached  our 
silent  partner  to  fill  the  deficiency.  Six  weeks  had 
elapsed,  there  was  no  obligation  outstanding,  and 
rather  than  advertise  and  relet  the  contract,  the 
head  of  the  War  Department  had  concluded  to  allot 
the  deficiency  by  private  award.  Major  Hunter  had 
been  burning  the  wires  between  Fort  Worth  and 
Washington,  in  order  to  hold  the  matter  open  until 
I  came  in  for  a  consultation.  The  department  had 


THE   CENTENNIAL   YEAR  215 

offered  half  a  cent  a  pound  over  and  above  our  pre 
vious  bid,  and  we  bribed  an  operator  to  reopen  his 
office  that  night  and  send  a  message  of  acceptance. 
We  had  ten  thousand  cattle  wintering  on  the  Medi 
cine  River,  and  it  would  just  trim  them  up  nicely 
to  pick  out  all  the  heavy,  rough  beeves  for  filling 
an  army  contract. 

When  we  had  got  a  confirmation  of  our  message, 
we  proceeded  on  south,  accompanied  by  the  two 
foremen,  and  reached  Uvalde  County  within  a 
week  of  the  time  set  for  receiving.  Edwards  had 
two  good  remudas  in  pastures,  wagons  and  teams 
secured,  and  cooks  and  wranglers  on  hand,  and  it 
only  remained  to  pick  the  men  to  complete  the 
outfits.  With  three  old  trail  foremen  on  the  alert 
for  good  hands  while  the  gathering  and  receiving 
was  going  on,  the  help  would  be  ready  in  ample 
time  to  receive  the  herds.  Gathering  the  beeves 
was  in  active  operation  on  our  arrival,  a  branding 
chute  had  been  built  to  facilitate  the  work,  and  all 
five  of  us  took  to  the  saddle  in  assisting  ranchmen 
in  holding  under  herd,  as  we  permitted  nothing  to 
be  corralled  night  or  day.  The  first  herd  was  com 
pleted  on  the  14th,  and  the  second  a  day  later, 
both  moving  out  without  an  hour's  delay,  the  only 
instructions  being  to  touch  at  Great  Bend,  Kan 
sas,  for  final  orders.  The  cattle  more  than  came 
up  to  expectations,  three  fourths  of  them  being  six 
and  seven  years  old,  and  as  heavy  as  oxen.  There 


216  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

was  something  about  the  days  of  the  open  range 
that  left  its  impression  on  animals,  as  these  two 
herds  were  as  uniform  in  build  as  deer,  and  I 
question  if  the  same  country  to-day  has  as  heavy 
beeves. 

Three  days  were  lost  in  reaching  Coryell  County, 
where  our  outfits  were  in  waiting  and  twenty  others 
were  at  work  gathering  cattle.  The  herds  were  made 
up  and  started  without  a  hitch,  and  we  passed  on  to 
Hood  County,  meeting  every  date  promptly  and 
again  finding  the  trail  outfits  awaiting  us.  Leaving 
my  active  partner  and  George  Edwards  to  receive 
the  two  herds,  I  rode  through  to  the  Clear  Fork  in 
a  single  day.  A  double  outfit  had  been  at  work  for 
the  past  two  weeks  gathering  outside  cattle  and  had 
over  a  thousand  under  herd  on  my  arrival.  Every 
thing  had  worked  out  so  nicely  in  receiving  the  pur 
chased  herds  that  I  finally  concluded  to  send  out 
my  steers,  and  we  began  gathering  on  the  home 
range.  By  making  small  round-ups,  we  disturbed 
the  young  calves  as  little  as  possible.  I  took  charge 
of  the  extra  outfit  and  my  ranch  foreman  of  his  own, 
one  beginning  on  the  west  end  of  my  range,  the 
other  going  north  and  coming  down  the  Brazos.  At 
the  end  of  a  week  the  two  crews  came  together  with 
nearly  eight  thousand  cattle  under  herd.  The  next 
day  we  cut  out  thirty-five  hundred  cows  and  started 
them  on  the  trail,  turning  free  the  remnant  of  she 
stuff,  and  began  shaping  up  the  steers,  using  only 


THE   CENTENNIAL  YEAR  217 

the  oldest  ID  making  up  thirty-two  hundred  head. 
There  were  fully  two  thousand  threes,  the  remain 
der  being  nearly  equally  divided  between  twos  and 
fours.  No  road  branding  was  necessary ;  the  only 
delay  in  moving  out  was  in  provisioning  a  wagon 
and  securing  a  foreman.  Failing  in  two  or  three 
quarters,  I  at  last  decided  on  a  young  fellow  on  my 
ranch,  and  he  was  placed  in  charge  of  the  last  herd. 
Great  Bend  was  his  destination,  I  instructed  him 
where  to  turn  off  the  Chisholm  trail,  —  north  of  the 
Salt  Fork  in  the  Cherokee  Outlet,  —  and  he  started 
like  an  army  with  banners. 

I  rejoined  my  active  partner  at  Fort  Worth. 
The  Hood  County  cattle  had  started  a  week  before, 
so  taking  George  Edwards  with  us,  we  took  train 
for  Kansas.  Major  Hunter  returned  to  his  home, 
while  Edwards  and  I  lost  no  time  in  reaching  the 
Medicine  River.  A  fortnight  was  spent  in  riding 
our  northern  range,  when  we  took  horses  and 
struck  out  for  Pond  Creek  in  the  Outlet.  The  lead 
herds  were  due  at  this  point  early  in  May,  and  on 
our  arrival  a  number  had  already  passed.  A  road 
house  and  stage  stand  had  previously  been  estab 
lished,  the  proprietor  of  which  kept  a  register  of 
passing  herds  for  the  convenience  of  owners. 
None  of  ours  were  due,  yet  we  looked  over  the 
"  arrivals  "  with  interest,  and  continued  on  down 
the  trail  to  Red  Fork.  The  latter  was  a  branch  of 
the  Arkansas  River,  and  at  low  water  was  inclined 


218  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

to  be  brackish,  and  hence  was  sometimes  called  the 
Salt  Fork,  with  nothing  to  differentiate  it  from  one 
of  the  same  name  sixty  miles  farther  north.  There 
was  an  old  Indian  trading  post  at  Red  Fork,  and  I 
lay  over  there  while  Edwards  went  on  south  to 
meet  the  cows.  His  work  for  the  summer  was  to 
oversee  the  deliveries  at  the  Indian  agencies,  Major 
Hunter  was  to  look  after  the  market  at  The  Bend, 
and  I  was  to  attend  to  the  contracts  at  army  posts 
on  the  upper  Missouri.  Our  first  steer  herd  to  ar 
rive  was  from  Hood  County,  and  after  seeing  them 
safely  on  the  Great  Bend  trail  at  Pond  Creek,  I 
waited  for  the  other  steer  cattle  from  Coryell  to 
arrive.  Both  herds  came  in  within  a  day  of  each 
other,  and  I  loitered  along  with  them,  finally  over 
taking  the  lead  one  when  within  fifty  miles  of  The 
Bend.  In  fair  weather  it  was  a  delightful  existence 
to  loaf  along  with  the  cattle ;  but  once  all  three 
herds  reached  their  destination,  two  outfits  held 
them,  and  I  took  the  Hood  County  lads  and 
dropped  back  on  the  Medicine.  Our  ranch  hands 
had  everything  shaped  up  nicely,  and  by  working 
a  double  outfit  and  making  round-ups  at  noon, 
when  the  cattle  were  on  water,  we  quietly  cut  out 
three  thousand  head  of  our  biggest  beeves  without 
materially  disturbing  our  holdings  on  that  range. 
These  northern  wintered  cattle  were  intended  for 
delivery  at  Fort  Abraham  Lincoln  on  the  Missouri 
River  in  what  is  now  North  Dakota.  The  through 


THE   CENTENNIAL   YEAR  219 

heavy  beeves  from  Uvalde  County  were  intended 
for  Fort  Eandall  and  intermediate  posts,  some  of 
them  for  reissue  to  various  Indian  agencies.  The 
reservations  of  half  a  dozen  tribes  were  tributary  to 
the  forts  along  the  upper  Missouri,  and  the  govern 
ment  was  very  liberal  in  supplying  its  wards  with 
fresh  beef. 

The  Medicine  River  beeves  were  to  be  grazed 
up  the  country  to  Fort  Lincoln.  We  passed  old 
Fort  Lamed  within  a  week,  and  I  left  the  outfit 
there  and  returned  to  The  Bend.  The  outfit  in 
charge  of  the  wintered  cattle  had  orders  to  touch 
at  and  cross  the  Missouri  River  at  Fort  Randall, 
where  I  would  meet  them  again  near  the  middle 
of  July.  The  market  had  fairly  opened  at  Great 
Bend,  and  I  was  kept  busy  assisting  Major  Hunter 
until  the  arrival  of  the  Uvalde  beef  herds.  Both 
came  through  in  splendid  condition,  were  admired 
by  every  buyer  in  the  market,  and  passed  on  north 
under  orders  to  graze  ten  miles  a  day  until  reach 
ing  their  destination.  By  this  time  the  where 
abouts  of  all  the  Indian  herds  were  known,  yet 
not  a  word  had  reached  me  from  the  foreman  of 
my  individual  cattle  after  crossing  into  the  Nations. 
It  was  now  the  middle  of  June,  and  there  were 
several  points  en  route  from  which  he  might  have 
mailed  a  letter,  as  did  all  the  other  foremen.  Herds, 
which  crossed  at  Red  River  Station  a  week  after 
my  steers,  came  into  The  Bend  and  reported  having 


220  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

spoken  no  "  44  "  cattle  en  route.  I  became  uneasy 
and  sent  a  courier  as  far  south  as  the  state  line, 
who  returned  with  a  comfortless  message.  Finally 
a  foreman  in  the  employ  of  Jess  Evens  came  to 
me  and  reported  having  taken  dinner  with  a  "  44" 
outfit  on  the  South  Canadian  ;  that  the  herd  swam 
the  river  that  afternoon,  after  which  he  never 
hailed  them  again.  They  were  my  own  dear  cattle, 
and  I  was  worrying ;  I  was  overdue  at  Fort  Ran 
dall,  and  in  duty  bound  to  look  after  the  interests 
of  the  firm.  Major  Hunter  came  to  the  rescue,  in 
his  usual  calm  manner,  and  expressed  his  confi 
dence  that  all  would  come  out  right  in  the  end ; 
that  when  the  mystery  was  unraveled  the  foreman 
would  be  found  blameless. 

I  took  a  night  train  for  the  north,  connected 
with  a  boat  on  the  Missouri  River,  and  by  finally 
taking  stage  reached  Fort  Randall.  The  mental 
worry  of  those  four  days  would  age  an  ordinary 
man,  but  on  my  arrival  at  the  post  a  message 
from  my  active  partner  informed  me  that  my  cattle 
had  reached  Dodge  City  two  weeks  before  my  leav 
ing.  Then  the  scales  fell  from  my  eyes,  as  I  could 
understand  that  when  inquiries  were  made  for  the 
Salt  Fork,  some  wayfarer  had  given  that  name  to 
the  Red  Fork;  and  the  new  Dodge  trail  turned 
to  the  left,  from  the  Chisholm,  at  Little  Turkey, 
the  first  creek  crossed  after  leaving  the  river.  The 
message  was  supplemented  a  few  days  later  by  a 


THE  CENTENNIAL   YEAR  221 

letter,  stating  that  Dodge  City  would  possibly  be  a 
better  market  than  the  Bend,  and  that  my  interests 
would  be  looked  after  as  well  as  if  1  were  present. 
A  load  was  lifted  from  my  shoulders,  and  when  the 
wintered  cattle  passed  Randall,  the  whole  post 
turned  out  to  see  the  beef  herd  on  its  way  up  to 
Lincoln.  The  government  line  of  forts  along  the 
Missouri  River  had  the  whitest  lot  of  officers  that 
it  was  ever  my  good  fortune  to  meet.  I  was  from 
Texas,  my  tongue  and  colloquialisms  of  speech  pro 
claimed  me  Southern-born,  and  when  I  admitted 
having  served  in  the  Confederate  army,  interest 
and  attention  was  only  heightened,  while  every 
possible  kindness  was  simply  showered  on  me. 

The  first  delivery  occurred  at  Fort  Lincoln.  It 
was  a  very  simple  affair.  We  cut  out  half  a  dozen 
average  beeves,  killed,  dressed,  and  weighed  them, 
and  an  honest  average  on  the  herd  was  thus 
secured.  The  contract  called  for  one  and  a  half 
miUion  pounds  on  foot ;  our  tender  overran  twelve 
per  cent ;  but  this  surplus  was  accepted  and  paid 
for.  The  second  delivery  was  at  Fort  Pierre  and 
the  last  at  Randall,  both  of  which  passed  pleasantly, 
the  many  acquaintances  among  army  men  that  sum 
mer  being  one  of  my  happiest  memories.  Leaving 
Randall,  we  put  in  to  the  nearest  railroad  point 
returning,  where  thirty  men  were  sent  home,  after 
which  we  swept  down  the  country  and  arrived  at 
Great  Bend  during  the  last  week  in  September. 


222  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

My  active  partner  had  handled  his  assignment  of 
the  summer's  work  in  a  masterly  manner,  having 
wholesaled  my  herd  at  Dodge  City  at  as  good  figures 
as  our  other  cattle  brought  in  retail  quantities  at 
The  Bend.  The  former  point  had  received  three 
hundred  and  fifty  thousand  Texas  cattle  that  sum 
mer,  while  every  one  conceded  that  Great  Bend's 
business  as  a  trail  terminal  would  close  with  that 
season.  The  latter  had  handled  nearly  a  quarter- 
million  cattle  that  year,  but  like  Abilene,  Wichita, 
and  other  trail  towns  in  eastern  Kansas,  it  was 
doomed  to  succumb  to  the  advance  guard  of  pio 
neer  settlers. 

The  best  sale  of  the  year  fell  to  my  active  part 
ner.  Before  the  shipping  season  opened,  he  sold, 
range  count,  our  holdings  on  the  Medicine  River, 
including  saddle  stock,  improvements,  and  good 
will.  The  cattle  might  possibly  have  netted  us  more 
by  marketing  them,  but  it  was  only  a  question  of 
time  until  the  flow  of  immigration  would  demand 
our  range,  and  Major  Hunter  had  sold  our  squat 
ter's  rights  while  they  had  a  value.  A  new  foreman 
had  been  installed  on  our  giving  up  possession,  and 
our  old  one  had  been  skirmishing  the  surrounding 
country  the  past  month  for  a  new  range,  making  a 
favorable  report  on  the  Eagle  Chief  in  the  Outlet. 
By  paying  a  trifling  rental  to  the  Cherokee  Nation, 
permission  could  be  secured  to  hold  cattle  on  these 
lands,  set  aside  as  a  hunting  ground.  George 


THE   CENTENNIAL   YEAR  223 

Edwards  had  been  rotting  all  summer  in  issuing 
cows  at  Indian  agencies,  but  on  the  first  of  October 
the  residue  of  his  herds  would  be  put  in  pastures 
or  turned  free  for  the  winter.  Major  Hunter  had 
wound  up  his  affairs  at  The  Bend,  and  nothing 
remained  but  a  general  settlement  of  the  summer's 
work.  This  took  place  at  Council  Grove,  our  silent 
partner  and  Edwards  both  being  present.  The 
profits  of  the  year  staggered  us  all.  I  was  anxious 
to  go  home,  the  different  outfits  having  all  gone  by 
rail  or  overland  with  the  remudas,  with  the  excep 
tion  of  the  two  from  Uvalde,  which  were  property 
of  the  firm.  I  had  bought  three  hundred  extra 
horses  at  The  Bend,  sending  them  home  with  the 
others,  and  now  nothing  remained  but  to  stock  the 
new  range  in  the  Cherokee  Outlet.  Edwards  and 
my  active  partner  volunteered  for  this  work,  it 
being  understood  that  the  Uvalde  remudas  would 
be  retained  for  ranch  use,  and  that  not  over  ten 
thousand  cattle  were  to  be  put  on  the  new  range 
for  the  winter.  Our  silent  partner  was  rapidly 
awakening  to  the  importance  of  his  usefulness  in 
securing  future  contracts  with  the  War  and  Indian 
departments,  and  vaguely  outlining  the  future,  we 
separated  to  three  points  of  the  compass. 


CHAPTER  XIV 
ESTABLISHING  A  NEW  RANCH 

I  HARDLY  knew  Fort  Worth  on  my  return.  The 
town  was  in  the  midst  of  a  boom.  The  foundations 
of  many  store  buildings  were  laid  on  Monday 
morning,  and  by  Saturday  night  they  were  occu 
pied  and  doing  a  land-office  business.  Lots  that 
could  have  been  bought  in  the  spring  for  one  hun 
dred  dollars  were  now  commanding  a  thousand, 
while  land  scrip  was  quoted  as  scarce  at  twenty- 
five  cents  an  acre.  I  hurried  home,  spoke  to  my 
wife,  and  engaged  two  surveyors  to  report  one 
week  later  at  my  ranch  on  the  Clear  Fork.  Big 
as  was  the  State  and  boundless  as  was  her  public 
domain,  I  could  not  afford  to  allow  this  advancing 
prosperity  to  catch  me  asleep  again,  and  I  firmly 
concluded  to  empty  that  little  tin  trunk  of  its 
musty  land  scrip.  True  enough,  the  present  boom 
was  not  noticeable  on  the  frontier,  yet  there  was  a 
buoyant  feeling  in  the  air  that  betokened  a  bril 
liant  future.  Something  enthused  me,  and  as  my 
creed  was  land  and  cattle,  I  made  up  my  mind  to 
plunge  into  both  to  my  full  capacity. 

The  last  outfit  to  return  from  the  summer's  drive 


ESTABLISHING   A   NEW   RANCH       225 

was  detained  on  the  Clear  Fork  to  assist  in  the  fall 
branding.  Another  one  of  fifteen  men  all  told  was 
chosen  from  the  relieved  lads  in  making  up  a  sur 
veying  party,  and  taking  fifty  saddle  horses  and  a 
well-stocked  commissary  with  us,  we  started  due 
west.  I  knew  the  country  for  some  distance  beyond 
Fort  Griffin,  and  from  late  maps  in  possession  of 
the  surveyors,  we  knew  that  by  holding  our  course, 
we  were  due  to  strike  a  fork  of  the  mother  Brazos 
before  reaching  the  Staked  Plain.  Holding  our 
course  contrary  to  the  needle,  we  crossed  the  Double 
Mountain  Fork,  and  after  a  week  out  from  the 
ranch  the  brakes  which  form  the  border  between 
the  lowlands  and  the  Llano  Estacado  were  sighted. 
Within  view  of  the  foothills  which  form  the  ap 
proach  of  the  famous  plain,  the  Salt  and  Double 
Mountain  forks  of  the  Brazos  are  not  over  twelve 
miles  apart.  We  traveled  up  the  divide  between 
these  two  rivers,  and  when  within  thirty  miles  of 
the  low-browed  borderland  a  halt  was  called  and 
we  went  into  camp.  From  the  view  before  us  one 
could  almost  imagine  the  feelings  of  the  discoverer 
of  this  continent  when  he  first  sighted  land ;  for  I 
remember  the  thrill  which  possessed  our  little  party 
as  we  looked  off  into  either  valley  or  forward  to  the 
menacing  Staked  Plain  in  our  front.  There  was 
something  primal  in  the  scene,  —  something  that 
brought  back  the  words,  "  In  the  beginning  God 
created  the  heavens  and  the  earth."  Men  who  knew 


226  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

neither  creed  nor  profession  of  faith  felt  themselves 
drawn  very  near  to  some  great  creative  power.  The 
surrounding  view  held  us  spellbound  by  its  beauty 
and  strength.  It  was  like  a  rush  of  fern-scents,  the 
breath  of  pine  forests,  the  music  of  the  stars,  the 
first  lovelight  in  a  mother's  eye  ;  and  now  its  pris 
tine  beauty  was  to  be  marred,  as  covetous  eyes  and 
a  lust  of  possession  moved  an  earth-born  man  to  lay 
hands  on  all  things  created  for  his  use. 

Camp  was  established  on  the  Double  Mountain 
Fork.  Many  miles  to  the  north,  a  spur  of  the 
Plain  extended  eastward,  in  the  elbow  of  which  it 
was  my  intention  to  locate  the  new  ranch.  A 
corner  was  established,  a  meridian  line  was  run 
north  beyond  the  Salt  Fork  and  a  random  one 
west  to  the  foothills.  After  a  few  days  one  sur 
veyor  ran  the  principal  lines  while  the  other  did 
the  cross-sectioning  and  correcting  back,  both  work 
ing  from  the  same  camp,  the  wagon  following  up 
the  work.  Antelope  were  seen  by  the  thousands, 
frequently  buffaloes  were  sighted,  and  scarcely  a 
day  passed  but  our  rifles  added  to  the  larder  of  our 
commissary  supplies.  Within  a  month  we  located 
four  hundred  sections,  covering  either  side  of  the 
Double  Mountain  Fork,  and  embracing  a  country 
ten  miles  wide  by  forty  long.  Coming  back  to  our 
original  meridian  line  across  to  the  Salt  Fork,  the 
work  of  surveying  that  valley  was  begun,  when  I 
was  compelled  to  turn  homeward.  A  list  of  con- 


ESTABLISHING  A  NEW   RANCH       227 

tracts  to  be  let  by  the  War  and  Interior  depart 
ments  would  be  ready  by  December  1,  and  my 
partners  relied  on  my  making  all  the  estimates. 
There  was  a  noticeable  advance  of  fully  one  dollar 
a  head  on  steer  cattle  since  the  spring  before,  and 
I  was  supposed  to  have  my  finger  on  the  pulse  of 
supply  and  prices,  as  all  government  awards  were 
let  far  in  advance  of  delivery.  George  Edwards 
had  returned  a  few  days  before  and  reported  hav 
ing  stocked  the  new  ranch  in  the  Outlet  with 
twelve  thousand  steers.  The  list  of  contracts  to  be 
let  had  arrived,  and  the  two  of  us  went  over  them 
carefully.  The  government  was  asking  for  bids  on 
the  delivery  of  over  two  hundred  thousand  cattle 
at  various  posts  and  agencies  in  the  West,  and 
confining  ourselves  to  well-known  territory,  we 
submitted  bids  on  fifteen  awards,  calling  for  forty- 
five  thousand  cattle  in  their  fulfillment. 

Our  estimates  were  sent  to  Major  Hunter  for 
his  approval,  who  in  turn  forwarded  them  to  our 
silent  partner  at  Washington,  to  be  submitted  to 
the  proper  departments.  As  the  awards  would  not 
be  made  until  the  middle  of  January,  nothing  defi 
nite  could  be  done  until  then,  so,  accompanied 
by  George  Edwards,  I  returned  to  the  surveying 
party  on  the  Salt  Fork  of  the  Brazos.  We  found 
them  busy  at  their  work,  the  only  interruption 
having  been  an  Indian  scare,  which  only  lasted  a 
few  days.  The  men  still  carried  rifles  against  sur- 


228  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

prise,  kept  a  scout  on  the  lookout  while  at  work, 
and  maintained  a  guard  over  the  camp  and  remuda 
at  night.  During  my  absence  they  had  located  a 
strip  of  country  ten  by  thirty  miles,  covering  the 
valley  of  the  Salt  Fork,  and  we  still  lacked  three 
hundred  sections  of  using  up  the  scrip.  The  river, 
along  which  they  were  surveying,  made  an  abrupt 
turn  to  the  north,  and  offsetting  by  sections 
around  the  bend,  we  continued  on  up  the  valley 
for  twenty  miles  or  until  the  brakes  of  the  Plain 
made  the  land  no  longer  desirable.  Eeturning  to 
our  commencement  point  with  still  one  hundred 
certificates  left,  we  extended  the  survey  five  miles 
down  both  rivers,  using  up  the  last  acre  of  scrip. 
The  new  ranch  was  irregular  in  form,  but  it  con 
trolled  the  waters  of  fully  one  million  acres  of  fine 
grazing  land  and  was  clothed  with  a  carpet  of  nutri 
tive  grasses.  This  was  the  range  of  the  buffalo,  and 
the  instinct  of  that  animal  could  be  relied  on  in 
choosing  a  range  for  its  successor,  the  Texas  cow. 
The  surveying  over,  nothing  remained  but  the  re 
cording  of  the  locations  at  the  county  seat  to  which 
for  legal  purposes  this  unorganized  country  was  at 
tached.  All  of  us  accompanied  the  outfit  returning, 
and  a  gala  week  we  spent,  as  no  less  than  half  a 
dozen  buffalo  robes  were  secured  before  reaching 
Fort  Griffin.  Deer  and  turkey  were  plentiful,  and 
it  was  with  difficulty  that  I  restrained  the  boys  from 
killing  wantonly,  as  they  were  young  fellows  whose 


ESTABLISHING   A  NEW   RANCH       229 

very  blood  yearned  for  the  chase  or  any  diverting 
excitement.  We  reached  the  ranch  on  the  Clear 
Fork  during  the  second  week  in  January,  and  those 
of  the  outfit  who  had  no  regular  homes  were  made 
welcome  guests  until  work  opened  in  the  spring. 
My  calf  crop  that  fall  had  exceeded  all  expectations, 
nearly  nine  thousand  having  been  branded,  while  the 
cattle  were  wintering  in  splendid  condition.  There 
was  little  or  nothing  to  do,  a  few  hunts  with  the 
hounds  merely  killing  time  until  we  got  reports  from 
Washington.  In  spite  of  all  competition  we  secured 
eight  contracts,  five  with  the  army  and  the  remain 
der  with  the  Indian  Bureau. 

Then  the  work  opened  in  earnest.  My  active 
partner  was  due  the  first  of  February,  and  during 
the  interim  George  Edwards  and  I  rode  a  circle  of 
five  counties  in  search  of  brands  of  cattle  for  sale. 
In  the  course  of  our  rounds  a  large  number  of 
whole  stocks  were  offered  us,  but  at  firmer  prices, 
yet  we  closed  no  trades,  though  many  brands  were 
bargains.  It  was  my  intention  to  stock  the  new 
ranch  on  the  Double  Mountain  Fork  the  coming 
summer,  and  if  arrangements  could  be  agreed  on 
with  Major  Hunter,  I  might  be  able  to  repeat  my 
success  of  the  summer  of  '74.  Emigration  to  Texas 
was  crowding  the  ranches  to  the  frontier,  many  of 
them  unwillingly,  and  it  appealed  to  me  strongly 
that  the  time  was  opportune  for  securing  an  ample 
holding  of  stock  cattle.  The  appearance  of  my 


230  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

active  partner  was  the  beginning  of  active  oper 
ations,  and  after  we  had  outlined  the  programme  for 
the  summer  and  gone  through  all  the  details  thor 
oughly,  I  asked  for  the  privilege  of  supplying  the 
cows  on  the  Indian  contracts.  Never  did  partners 
stand  more  willingly  by  each  other  than  did  the 
firm  of  Hunter,  Anthony  &  Co.,  and  I  only  had 
to  explain  the  opportunity  of  buying  brands  at 
wholesale,  sending  the  young  steers  up  the  trail 
and  the  aging,  dry,  and  barren  cows  to  Indian 
agencies,  to  gain  the  hearty  approval  of  the  little 
Yankee  major.  He  was  entitled  to  a  great  deal  of 
credit  for  my  holdings  in  land,  for  from  his  first 
sight  of  Texas,  day  after  day,  line  upon  line,  pre 
cept  upon  precept,  he  had  urged  upon  me  the 
importance  of  securing  title  to  realty,  while  its 
equivalent  in  scrip  was  being  hawked  about,  begging 
a  buyer.  Now  we  rejoiced  together  in  the  fulfill 
ment  of  his  prophecy,  as  I  can  lay  little  claim  to 
any  foresight,  but  am  particularly  anxious  to  give 
credit  where  credit  is  due. 

With  an  asylum  for  any  and  all  remnants  of 
stock  cattle,  we  authorized  George  Edwards  to 
close  trades  on  a  number  of  brands.  Taking  with 
us  the  two  foremen  who  had  brought  beef  herds  out 
of  Uvalde  County  the  spring  before,  the  major 
and  I  started  south  on  the  lookout  for  beeves. 
The  headwaters  of  the  Nueces  and  its  tributaries 
were  again  our  destination,  and  the  usual  welcome 


ESTABLISHING  A  NEW   RANCH       231 

to  buyers  was  extended  with  that  hospitality  that 
only  the  days  of  the  open  range  knew  and  prac 
ticed.  We  closed  contracts  with  former  customers 
without  looking  at  their  cattle.  When  a  ranchman 
gave  us  his  word  to  deliver  us  as  good  or  better 
beeves  than  the  spring  before,  there  was  no  occa 
sion  to  question  his  ability,  and  the  cattle  never  de 
ceived.  There  might  arise  petty  wrangles  over  tri 
fles,  but  the  general  hungering  for  a  market  among 
cowmen  had  not  yet  been  satiated,  and  they  offered 
us  their  best  that  we  might  come  again.  We  placed 
our  contracts  along  three  rivers  and  over  as  many 
counties,  limiting  the  number  to  ten  thousand 
beeves  of  the  same  ages  and  paying  one  dollar  a 
head  above  the  previous  spring.  One  of  our  fore 
men  was  provided  with  a  letter  of  credit,  and  the 
two  were  left  behind  to  make  up  three  new  and 
complete  outfits  for  the  trail. 

This  completed  the  purchase  of  beef  cattle.  Two 
of  our  contracts  called  for  northern  wintered  beeves, 
which  would  be  filled  out  of  our  holdings  in  the 
Cherokee  Outlet.  We  again  stopped  in  central 
Texas,  but  prices  were  too  firm,  and  we  passed  on 
west  to  San  Saba  and  Lampasas  counties,  where  we 
effected  trades  on  nine  thousand  five  hundred  three- 
year-old  steers.  My  own  outfits  would  drop  down 
from  the  Clear  Fork  to  receive  these  cattle,  and 
after  we  had  perfected  our  banking  arrangements 
the  major  returned  to  San  Antonio  and  I  started 


232  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

homeward.  George  Edwards  had  in  the  mean  time 
bargained  for  ten  brands,  running  anywhere  from 
one  to  five  thousand  head,  paying  straight  through 
five  to  seven  dollars,  half  cash  and  the  balance  in 
eight  months,  everything  to  be  delivered  on  the 
Clear  Fork.  We  intentionally  made  these  deliv 
eries  late — during  the  last  week  in  March  and  the 
first  one  in  April  —  in  order  that  Major  Hunter 
might  approve  of  the  three  herds  of  cows  for  In 
dian  delivery.  Once  I  had  been  put  in  possession 
of  all  necessary  details,  Edwards  started  south  to 
join  Major  Hunter,  as  the  receiving  of  the  Nueces 
River  beeves  was  set  for  from  the  10th  to  the  15th 
of  March. 

I  could  see  a  busy  time  ahead.  There  was  wood 
to  haul  for  the  branding,  three  complete  outfits  to 
start  for  the  central  part  of  the  State,  new  wagons 
to  equip  for  the  trail,  and  others  to  care  for  the 
calf  crop  while  en  route  to  the  Double  Mountain 
Fork.  There  were  oxen  to  buy  in  equipping  teams 
to  accompany  the  stock  cattle  to  the  new  ranch,  two 
yoke  being  allowed  to  each  wagon,  as  it  was  strength 
and  not  speed  that  was  desired.  My  old  foremen 
rallied  at  a  word  and  relieved  me  of  the  lesser  de 
tails  of  provisioning  the  commissaries  and  engag 
ing  the  help.  Trusty  men  were  sent  to  oversee  and 
look  out  for  my  interests  in  gathering  the  different 
brands,  the  ranges  of  many  of  them  being  fifty  to 
one  hundred  miles  distant.  The  different  brands 


ESTABLISHING  A  NEW   RANCH       233 

were  coming  from  six  separate  counties  along  the 
border,  and  on  their  arrival  at  my  ranch  we  must 
be  ready  to  receive,  brand,  and  separate  the  herds 
into  their  respective  classes,  sending  two  grades  to 
market  and  the  remnant  to  their  new  home  at  the 
foot  of  the  Staked  Plain.  The  condition  of  the 
mules  must  be  taken  into  consideration  before  the 
army  can  move,  and  in  cattle  life  the  same  reliance 
is  placed  on  the  fitness  for  duty  of  the  saddle  horses. 
I  had  enough  picked  ones  to  make  up  a  dozen  re- 
mudas  if  necessary,  and  rested  easy  on  that  score. 
The  date  for  receiving  arrived  and  found  us  all 
ready  and  waiting. 

The  first  herd  was  announced  to  arrive  on 
the  25th  of  March.  I  met  it  ten  miles  from  the 
ranch.  My  man  assured  me  that  the  brand  as 
gathered  was  intact  and  that  it  would  run  fifty 
per  cent  dry  cows  and  steers  over  two  years  old. 
A  number  of  mature  beeves  even  were  noticeable 
and  younger  steers  were  numerous,  while  the  mis 
cellany  of  the  herd  ran  to  every  class  and  condi 
tion  of  the  bovine  race.  Two  other  brands  were 
expected  the  next  day,  and  that  evening  the  first 
one  to  arrive  was  counted  and  accepted.  The  next 
morning  the  entire  herd  was  run  through  a  brand 
ing  chute  and  classified,  all  steers  above  a  yearling 
and  dry  and  aging  cows  going  into  one  contingent 
and  the  mixed  cattle  into  another.  In  order  to 
save  horseflesh,  this  work  was  easily  done  in  the 


234  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

corrals.  By  hanging  a  gate  at  the  exit  of  the 
branding  chute,  a  man  sat  overhead  and  by  swing 
ing  it  a  variation  of  two  feet,  as  the  cattle  trailed 
through  the  trough  in  single  file,  the  herd  was  cut 
into  two  classes.  Those  intended  for  the  trail  were 
put  under  herd,  while  the  stock  cattle  were  branded 
into  the  "44"  and  held  separate.  The  second  and 
third  herds  were  treated  in  a  similar  manner,  when 
we  found  ourselves  with  over  eleven  thousand 
cattle  on  hand,  with  two  other  brands  due  in  a 
few  days.  But  the  evening  of  the  fourth  day  saw 
a  herd  of  thirty-three  hundred  steers  on  its  way  to 
Kansas,  while  a  second  one,  numbering  two  hun 
dred  more  than  the  first,  was  lopped  off  from  the 
mixed  stuff  and  started  west  for  the  Double  Moun 
tain  Fork. 

The  situation  was  eased.  A  conveyance  had 
been  sent  to  the  railroad  to  meet  my  partner,  and 
before  he  and  Edwards  arrived  two  other  brands 
had  been  received.  A  herd  of  thirty-five  hundred 
dry  cows  was  approved  and  started  at  once  for  the 
Indian  Territory,  while  a  second  one  moved  out 
for  the  west,  cleaning  up  the  holdings  of  mixed 
stuff.  The  congestion  was  again  relieved,  and  as 
the  next  few  brands  were  expected  to  run  light  in 
steers,  everything  except  cows  was  held  under  herd 
until  all  had  been  received.  The  final  contingent 
came  in  from  Wise  County  and  were  shaped  up, 
and  the  last  herd  of  cows,  completing  ten  thousand 


ESTABLISHING   A   NEW   RANCH       235 

five  hundred,  started  for  the  Washita  agency.  I 
still  had  nearly  sixty-five  hundred  steers  on  hand, 
and  cutting  back  all  of  a  small  overplus  of  thin 
light  cows,  I  had  three  brands  of  steers  cut  into 
one  herd  and  four  into  another,  both  moving  out  for 
Dodge  City.  This  left  me  with  fully  eight  thou 
sand  miscellany  on  hand,  with  nothing  but  my 
ranch  outfit  to  hold  them,  close-herding  by  day  and 
^bedding  down  and  guarding  them  by  night.  Set 
tlements  were  made  with  the  different  sellers,  my 
outstanding  obligations  amounting  to  over  one 
hundred  thousand  dollars,  which  the  three  steer 
herds  were  expected  to  liquidate.  My  active  part 
ner  and  George  Edwards  took  train  for  the  north. 
The  only  change  in  the  programme  was  that  Major 
Hunter  was  to  look  after  our  deliveries  at  army 
posts,  while  I  was  to  meet  our  herds  on  their 
arrival  in  Dodge  City.  The  cows  were  sold  to  the 
firm,  and  including  my  individual  cattle,  we  had 
twelve  herds  on  the  trail,  or  a  total  of  thirty-nine 
thousand  five  hundred  head. 

On  the  return  of  the  first  outfit  from  the  west, 
some  three  weeks  after  leaving,  the  herd  of  stock 
cattle  was  cut  in  two  and  started.  But  a  single 
man  was  left  on  the  Clear  Fork,  my  ranch  foreman 
taking  one  herd,  while  I  accompanied  the  other.  It 
requires  the  patience  of  a  saint  to  handle  cows  and 
calves,  two  wagons  to  the  herd  being  frequently 
taxed  to  their  capacity  in  picking  up  the  young- 


236  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

sters.  It  was  a  constant  sight  to  see  some  of  the 
boys  carrying  a  new-born  calf  across  the  saddle 
seat,  followed  by  the  mother,  until  camp  or  the 
wagon  was  reached.  I  was  ashamed  of  my  own  lack 
of  patience  on  that  trip,  while  irritable  men  could 
while  away  the  long  hours,  nursing  along  the  drag 
end  of  a  herd  of  cows  and  their  toddling  offspring. 
We  averaged  only  about  ten  miles  a  day,  the  herds 
were  large  and  unwieldy,  and  after  twelve  days  out 
both  were  scattered  along  the  Salt  Fork  and  given 
their  freedom.  Leaving  one  outfit  to  locate  the 
cattle  on  the  new  range,  the  other  two  hastened 
back  to  the  Clear  Fork  and  gathered  two  herds, 
numbering  thirty-five  hundred  each,  of  young  cows 
and  heifers  from  the  ranch  stock.  But  a  single  day 
was  lost  in  rounding-up,  when  they  were  started 
west,  half  a  day  apart,  and  I  again  took  charge  of 
an  outfit,  the  trip  being  an  easy  one  and  made  in 
ten  days,  as  the  calves  were  large  enough  to  follow 
and  there  were  no  drag  cattle  among  them.  On 
our  arrival  at  the  new  ranch,  the  cows  and  heifers 
were  scattered  among  the  former  herds,  and  both 
outfits  started  back,  one  to  look  after  the  Clear 
Fork  and  the  other  to  bring  through  the  last  herd 
in  stocking  my  new  possessions.  This  gave  me 
fully  twenty-five  thousand  mixed  cattle  on  my  new 
range,  relieving  the  old  ranch  of  a  portion  of  its 
she  stuff  and  shaping  up  both  stocks  to  better 
advantage. 


ESTABLISHING  A  NEW   RANCH       237 

It  was  my  intention  to  make  my  home  on  the 
Clear  Fork  thereafter,  and  the  ranch  outfit  had 
orders  to  build  a  comfortable  house  during  the 
summer.  The  frontier  was  rapidly  moving  west 
ward,  the  Indian  was  no  longer  a  dread,  as  it  was 
only  a  question  of  time  until  the  Comanche  and  his 
ally  would  imitate  their  red  brethren  and  accept 
the  dole  of  the  superior  race.  I  was  due  in  Dodge 
City  the  first  of  June,  the  ranches  would  take  care 
of  themselves,  and  touching  at  the  Edwards  ranch 
for  a  day,  I  reached  "  Dodge  "  before  any  of  the 
herds  arrived.  Here  was  a  typical  trail  town,  a 
winter  resort  for  buffalo  hunters,  no  settlement  for 
fifty  miles  to  the  east,  and  an  almost  boundless 
range  on  which  to  hold  through  Texas  cattle.  The 
business  was  bound  to  concentrate  at  this  place,  as 
all  other  markets  were  abandoned  within  the  State, 
while  it  was  easily  accessible  to  the  mountain  re 
gions  on  the  west.  It  was  the  logical  meeting  point 
for  buyers  and  drovers ;  and  while  the  town  of  that 
day  has  passed  into  history  as  "  wicked  Dodge,"  it 
had  many  redeeming  features.  The  veneer  of  civ 
ilization  may  have  fallen,  to  a  certain  extent,  from 
the  wayfaring  man  who  tarried  in  this  cow  town, 
yet  his  word  was  a  bond,  and  he  reverenced  the 
pure  in  womanhood,  though  to  insult  him  invited 
death. 

George  Edwards  and  Major  Hunter  had  become 
such  great  chums  that  I  was  actually  jealous  of 


238  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

being  supplanted  in  the  affections  of  the  Yankee 
major.  The  two  had  been  inseparable  for  months, 
visiting  at  The  Grove,  spending  a  fortnight  together 
at  the  beef  ranch  in  the  Outlet,  and  finally  putting 
in  an  appearance  at  Dodge.  Headquarters  for  the 
summer  were  established  at  the  latter  point,  our 
bookkeeper  arrived,  and  we  were  ready  for  busi 
ness.  The  market  opened  earlier  than  at  more 
eastern  points.  The  bulk  of  the  sales  were  made 
to  ranchmen,  who  used  whole  herds  where  the  agri 
cultural  regions  only  bought  cattle  by  the  hundreds. 
It  was  more  satisfactory  than  the  retail  trade ; 
credit  was  out  of  the  question,  and  there  was  no 
haggling  over  prices.  Cattle  companies  were  form 
ing  and  stocking  new  ranges,  and  an  influx  of 
English  and  Scotch  capital  was  seeking  investment 
in  ranches  and  live  stock  in  the  West, —  a  mere 
forerunner  of  what  was  to  follow  in  later  years. 

Our  herds  began  arriving,  and  as  soon  as  an  out 
fit  could  be  freed  it  was  started  for  the  beef  ranch 
under  George  Edwards,  where  a  herd  of  wintered 
beeves  was  already  made  up  to  start  for  the  upper 
Missouri  River.  Major  Hunter  followed  a  week 
later  with  the  second  relieved  outfit,  and  our  cattle 
were  all  moving  for  their  destinations.  The  through 
beef  herds  from  the  upper  Nueces  River  had  orders 
to  touch  at  old  Fort  Larned  to  the  eastward, 
Edwards  drifted  on  to  the  Indian  agencies,  and  I 
bestirred  myself  to  the  task  of  selling  six  herds  of 


ESTABLISHING  A  NEW  RANCH       239 

young  cattle  at  Dodge.  Once  more  I  was  back  in 
my  old  element,  except  that  every  feature  of  the 
latter  market  was  on  an  enlarged  scale.  Two  herds 
were  sold  to  one  man  in  Colorado,  three  others  went 
under  contract  to  the  Kepublican  Kiver  in  Nebraska, 
and  the  last  one  was  cut  into  blocks  and  found  a 
market  with  feeders  in  Kansas.  Long  before  deliv 
eries  were  concluded  to  the  War  or  Interior  de 
partments,  headquarters  were  moved  back  to  The 
Grove,  my  work  being  done.  In  the  interim  of  wait 
ing  for  the  close  of  the  year's  business,  our  book 
keeper  looked  after  two  shipments  of  a  thousand 
head  each  from  the  beef  ranch,  while  I  visited  my 
brother  in  Missouri  and  surprised  him  by  buying  a 
carload  of  thoroughbred  bulls.  Arrangements  were 
made  for  shipping  them  to  Fort  Worth  during  the 
last  week  in  November,  and  promising  to  call  for 
them,  I  returned  to  The  Grove  to  meet  my  part 
ners  and  adjust  all  accounts  for  the  year. 


CHAPTER  XV 
HARVEST  HOME 

THE  firm's  profits  for  the  summer  of  77  footed  up 
over  two  hundred  thousand  dollars.  The  government 
herds  from  the  Cherokee  Outlet  paid  the  best,  those 
sent  to  market  next,  while  the  through  cattle  remu 
nerated  us  in  the  order  of  beeves,  young  steers,  and 
lastly  cows.  There  was  a  satisfactory  profit  even  in 
the  latter,  yet  the  same  investment  in  other  classes 
paid  a  better  per  cent  profit,  and  the  banking  in 
stincts  of  my  partners  could  be  relied  on  to  seek 
the  best  market  for  our  capital.  There  was  nothing 
haphazard  about  our  business ;  separate  accounts 
were  kept  on  every  herd,  and  at  the  end  of  the 
season  the  percentage  profit  on  each  told  their  own 
story.  For  instance,  in  the  above  year  it  cost  us 
more  to  deliver  a  cow  at  an  agency  in  the  Indian 
Territory  than  a  steer  at  Dodge  City,  Kansas.  The 
herds  sold  in  Colorado  had  been  driven  at  an  ex 
pense  of  eighty-five  cents  a  head,  those  delivered  on 
the  Republican  River  ninety,  and  every  cow  driven 
that  year  cost  us  over  one  dollar  a  head  in  general 
expense.  The  necessity  of  holding  the  latter  for  a 
period  of  four  months  near  agencies  for  issuing 


HARVEST   HOME  241 

purposes  added  to  the  cost,  and  was  charged  to 
that  particular  department  of  our  business. 

George  Edwards  and  my  active  partner  agreed 
to  restock  our  beef  ranch  in  the  Outlet,  and  I  re 
turned  to  Missouri.  I  make  no  claim  of  being  the 
first  cowman  to  improve  the  native  cattle  of  Texas, 
yet  forty  years'  keen  observation  has  confirmed 
my  original  idea,  —  that  improvement  must  come 
through  the  native  and  gradually.  Climatic  condi 
tions  in  Texas  are  such  that  the  best  types  of  the 
bovine  race  would  deteriorate  if  compelled  to  sub 
sist  the  year  round  on  the  open  range.  The  strong 
est  point  in  the  original  Spanish  cattle  was  their 
inborn  ability  as  foragers,  being  inured  for  centu 
ries  to  drouth,  the  heat  of  summer,  and  the  north 
ers  of  winter,  subsisting  for  months  on  prickly  pear, 
a  species  of  the  cactus  family,  or  drifting  like  game 
animals  to  more  favored  localities  in  avoiding  the 
natural  afflictions  that  beset  an  arid  country.  In 
producing  the  ideal  range  animal  it  was  more  im 
portant  to  retain  those  rustling  qualities  than  to 
gain  a  better  color,  a  few  pounds  in  weight,  and  a 
shortening  of  horns  and  legs,  unless  their  possessor 
could  withstand  the  rigors  of  a  variable  climate. 
Nature  befriends  the  animal  race.  The  buffalo  of 
Montana  could  face  the  blizzard,  while  his  brother 
on  the  plains  of  Texas  sought  shelter  from  the 
northers  in  canons  and  behind  sand-dunes,  guided 
by  an  instinct  that  foretold  the  coming  storm. 


242  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

I  accompanied  my  car  of  thoroughbred  bulls  and 
unloaded  them  at  the  first  station  north  of  Fort 
Worth.  They  numbered  twenty-five,  all  two-year- 
olds  past,  and  were  representative  of  three  leading 
beef  brands  of  established  reputation.  Others  had 
tried  the  experiment  before  me,  the  main  trouble 
being  in  acclimation,  which  affects  animals  the  same 
as  the  human  family.  But  by  wintering  them  at 
their  destination,  I  had  hopes  of  inuring  the  im 
portation  so  that  they  would  withstand  the  coming 
summer,  the  heat  of  which  was  a  sore  trial  to  a 
northern-bred  animal.  Accordingly  I  made  arrange 
ments  with  a  farmer  to  feed  my  car  of  bulls  during 
the  winter,  hay  and  grain  both  being  plentiful. 
They  had  cost  me  over  five  thousand  dollars,  and 
rather  than  risk  the  loss  of  a  single  one  by  chancing 
them  on  the  range,  an  additional  outlay  of  a  few 
hundred  dollars  was  justified.  Limiting  the  corn 
fed  to  three  barrels  to  the  animal  a  month,  with 
plenty  of  rough  feed,  ought  to  bring  them  through 
the  winter  in  good,  healthy  form.  The  farmer  pro 
mised  to  report  monthly  on  their  condition,  and 
agreeing  to  send  for  them  by  the  first  of  April,  I 
hastened  on  home. 

My  wife  had  taken  a  hand  in  the  building  of  the 
new  house  on  the  Clear  Fork.  It  was  quite  a  preten 
tious  affair,  built  of  hewed  logs,  and  consisted  of  two 
large  rooms  with  a  hallway  between,  a  gallery  on 
three  sides,  and  a  kitchen  at  the  rear.  Each  of  the 


HARVEST   HOME  243 

main  rooms  had  an  ample  fireplace,  both  hearths 
and  chimneys  built  from  rock,  the  only  material 
foreign  to  the  ranch  being  the  lumber  in  the  floors, 
doors,  and  windows.  Nearly  all  the  work  was  done 
by  the  ranch  hands,  even  the  clapboards  were  riven 
from  oak  that  grew  along  the  mother  Brazos,  and 
my  wife  showed  me  over  the  house  as  though  it  had 
been  a  castle  that  she  had  inherited  from  some 
feudal  forbear.  I  was  easily  satisfied;  the  main 
concern  was  for  the  family,  as  I  hardly  lived  at 
home  enough  to  give  any  serious  thought  to  the 
roof  that  sheltered  me.  The  original  buildings  had 
been  improved  and  enlarged  for  the  men,  and  an 
air  of  prosperity  pervaded  the  Anthony  ranch  con 
sistent  with  the  times  and  the  success  of  its  owner. 
The  two  ranches  reported  a  few  over  fifteen  thou 
sand  calves  branded  that  fall.  A  dim  wagon  road 
had  been  established  between  the  ranches,  by  going 
and  returning  outfits  during  the  stocking  of  the 
new  ranch  the  spring  before,  and  the  distance  could 
now  be  covered  in  two  days  by  buckboard.  The 
list  of  government  contracts  to  be  let  was  awaiting 
my  attention,  and  after  my  estimates  had  been  pre 
pared  and  forwarded  to  my  active  partner,  it  was 
nearly  the  middle  of  December  before  I  found  time 
to  visit  the  new  ranch.  The  hands  at  Double  Moun 
tain  had  not  been  idle,  snug  headquarters  were  es 
tablished,  and  three  line  camps  on  the  outskirts  of 
the  range  were  comfortably  equipped  to  shelter  men 


244  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

and  horses.  The  cattle  had  located  nicely,  two  large 
corrals  had  been  built  on  each  river,  and  the  calves 
were  as  thrifty  as  weeds.  Gray  wolves  were  the 
worst  enemy  encountered,  running  in  large  bands 
and  finding  shelter  in  the  cedar  brakes  in  the 
canons  and  foothills  which  border  on  the  Staked 
Plain.  My  foreman  on  the  Double  Mountain  ranch 
was  using  poison  judiciously,  all  the  line  camps 
were  supplied  with  the  same,  and  an  active  winter 
of  poisoning  wolves  was  already  inaugurated  before 
my  arrival.  Long-range  rifles  would  supplement 
the  work,  and  a  few  years  of  relentless  war  on  these 
pests  would  rid  the  ranch  of  this  enemy  of  live 
stock. 

Together  my  foreman  and  I  planned  for  starting 
an  improved  herd  of  cattle.  A  canon  on  the  west 
was  decided  on  as  a  range,  as  it  was  well  watered 
from  living  springs,  having  a  valley  several  miles 
wide,  forming  a  park  with  ample  range  for  two 
thousand  cattle.  The  bluffs  on  either  side  were 
abrupt,  almost  an  in  closure,  making  it  an  easy 
matter  for  two  men  to  loose-herd  a  small  amount  of 
stock,  holding  them  adjoining  my  deeded  range,  yet 
separate.  The  survival  of  the  fittest  was  adopted 
as  the  rule  in  beginning  the  herd,  five  hundred 
choice  cows  were  to  form  the  nucleus,  to  be  the 
pick  of  the  new  ranch,  thrift  and  formation  to 
decide  their  selection.  Solid  colors  only  were  to  be 
chosen,  every  natural  point  in  a  cow  was  to  be  con- 


HARVEST  HOME  245 

sidered,  with  the  view  of  reproducing  the  race 
in  improved  form.  My  foreman  —  an  intelligent 
young  fellow  —  was  in  complete  sympathy,  and 
promised  me  that  he  would  comb  the  range  in 
selecting  the  herd.  The  first  appearance  of  grass 
in  the  spring  was  agreed  on  as  the  time  for  gath 
ering  the  cows,  when  he  would  personally  come  to 
the  Clear  Fork  and  receive  the  importation  of  bulls, 
thus  fully  taking  all  responsibility  in  establishing 
the  improved  herd.  By  this  method,  unless  our 
plans  miscarried,  in  the  course  of  a  few  years  we 
expected  to  be  raising  quarter-bloods  in  the  main 
ranch  stock,  and  at  the  same  time  retaining  all 
those  essential  qualities  that  distinguish  the  range- 
raised  from  the  domestic-bred  animal. 

On  my  return  to  the  Clear  Fork,  which  was  now 
my  home,  a  letter  from  my  active  partner  was 
waiting,  informing  me  that  he  and  Edwards  would 
reach  Texas  about  the  time  the  list  of  awards  would 
arrive.  They  had  been  unsuccessful  in  fully  stock 
ing  our  beef  ranch,  securing  only  three  thousand 
head,  as  prices  were  against  them,  and  the  letter 
intimated  that  something  must  be  done  to  provide 
against  a  repetition  of  this  unforeseen  situation. 
The  ranch  in  the  Outlet  had  paid  us  a  higher  per 
cent  on  the  investment  than  any  of  our  ventures, 
and  to  neglect  fully  stocking  it  was  contrary  to  the 
creed  of  Hunter,  Anthony  &  Co.  True,  we  were 
double-wintering  some  four  thousand  head  of  cattle 


246  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

on  our  Cherokee  range,  but  if  a  fair  allowance  of 
awards  was  allotted  the  firm,  requiring  northern 
wintered  cattle  in  filling,  it  might  embarrass  us  to 
supply  the  same  when  we  did  not  have  the  beeves 
in  hand ;  it  was  our  business  to  have  the  beef. 

At  the  appointed  time  the  buckboard  was  sent  to 
Fort  Worth,  and  a  few  days  later  Major  Hunter 
and  our  main  segundo  drove  up  to  the  Clear  Fork. 
Omitting  all  preludes,  atmosphere,  and  sunsets,  we 
got  down  to  business  at  once.  If  we  could  drive 
cattle  to  Dodge  City  and  market  them  for  eighty- 
five  cents,  we  ought  to  be  able  to  deliver  them  on 
our  northern  range  for  six  bits,  and  the  horses  could 
be  returned  or  sold  at  a  profit.  If  any  of  our  estab 
lished  trade  must  be  sacrificed,  why,  drop  what  paid 
the  least;  but  half  stock  our  beef  ranch?  Never 
again !  This  was  to  be  the  slogan  for  the  coming 
summer,  and,  on  receiving  the  report  from  Wash 
ington,  we  were  enabled  to  outline  a  programme 
for  the  year.  The  gradually  advancing  prices  in 
cattle  were  alarming  me,  as  it  was  now  perceptible 
in  cows,  and  in  submitting  our  bids  on  Indian 
awards  I  had  made  the  allowance  of  one  dollar  a 
head  advance  over  the  spring  before.  In  spite  of 
this  we  were  allotted  five  contracts  from  the  Inte 
rior  Department  and  seven  to  the  Army,  three  of 
the  latter  requiring  ten  thousand  northern  win 
tered  beeves,  —  only  oversold  three  thousand  head. 
Major  Hunter  met  my  criticisms  by  taking  the 


HARVEST   HOME  247 

ground  that  we  virtually  had  none  of  the  cattle  on 
hand,  and  if  we  could  buy  Southern  stock  to  meet 
our  requirements,  why  not  the  three  thousand  that 
we  lacked  in  the  North.  Our  bids  had  passed 
through  his  hands  last;  he  knew  our  northern 
range  was  not  fully  stocked,  and  had  forwarded  the 
estimates  to  our  silent  partner  at  Washington,  and 
now  the  firm  had  been  assigned  awards  in  excess  of 
their  holdings.  But  he  was  the  kind  of  a  partner 
I  liked,  and  if  he  could  see  his  way  clear,  he  could 
depend  on  my  backing  him  to  the  extent  of  my 
ability  and  credit. 

The  business  of  the  firm  had  grown  so  rapidly 
that  it  was  deemed  advisable  to  divide  it  into  three 
departments,  —  the  Army,  the  Indian,  the  beef 
ranch  and  general  market.  Major  Hunter  was 
specially  qualified  to  handle  the  first  division,  the 
second  fell  to  Edwards,  and  the  last  was  assumed 
by  myself.  We  were  to  consult  each  other  when 
convenient,  but  each  was  to  act  separately  for  the 
firm,  my  commission  requiring  fifteen  thousand 
cattle  for  our  ranch  in  the  Outlet,  and  three  herds 
for  the  market  at  Dodge  City.  Our  banking  points 
were  limited  to  Fort  Worth  and  San  Antonio,  so 
agreeing  to  meet  at  the  latter  point  on  the  1st  of 
February  for  a  general  consultation,  we  separated 
with  a  view  to  feeling  the  home  market.  Our  man 
Edwards  dropped  out  in  the  central  part  of  the 
State,  my  active  partner  wished  to  look  into  the 


248  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

situation  on  the  lower  Nueces  River,  and  I  re 
turned  to  the  headwaters  of  that  stream.  During 
the  past  two  summers  we  had  driven  five  herds  of 
heavy  beeves  from  Uvalde  and  adjoining  counties, 
and  while  we  liked  the  cattle  of  that  section,  it 
was  considered  advisable  to  look  elsewhere  for  our 
beef  supply.  Within  a  week  I  let  contracts  for 
five  herds  of  two  and  three  year  old  steers,  then 
dropped  back  to  the  Colorado  River  and  bought  ten 
thousand  more  in  San  Saba  and  McCulloch  coun 
ties.  This  completed  the  purchases  in  my  depart 
ment,  and  I  hastened  back  to  San  Antonio  for  the 
expected  consultation.  Neither  my  active  partner 
nor  my  trusted  man  had  arrived,  nor  was  there  a 
line  to  indicate  where  they  were  or  when  they  might 
be  expected,  though  Major  Hunter  had  called  at 
our  hotel  a  few  days  previously  for  his  mail.  The 
designated  day  was  waning,  and  I  was  worried  by 
the  non-appearance  of  either,  when  I  received  a 
wire  from  Austin,  saying  they  had  just  sublet  the 
Indian  contracts. 

The  next  morning  my  active  partner  and  Ed 
wards  arrived.  The  latter  had  met  some  parties  at 
the  capital  who  were  anxious  to  fill  our  Indian 
deliveries,  and  had  wired  us  in  the  firm's  name,  and 
Major  Hunter  had  taken  the  first  train  for  Austin. 
Both  returned  wreathed  in  smiles,  having  sublet 
our  awards  at  figures  that  netted  us  more  than  we 
could  have  realized  had  we  bought  and  delivered 


HARVEST   HOME  249 

the  cattle  at  our  own  risk.    It  was  clear  money, 
requiring  not  a  stroke  of  work,  while  it  freed  a 
valuable  man  in  outfitting,  receiving,  and  starting 
our  other  herds,  as  well  as  relieving  a  snug  sum 
for  reinvestment.  Our  capital  lay  idle  half  the  year, 
the  spring  months  were  our  harvest,  and,  assign 
ing  Edwards  full  charge  of  the  cattle  bought  on  the 
Colorado  River,  we  instructed  him  to  buy  for  the 
Dodge  market  four  herds  more  in  adjoining  coun 
ties,  bringing  down  the  necessary  outfits  to  handle 
them  from  my  ranch  on  the  Clear  Fork.    Previous 
to  his  return  to  San  Antonio  my  active  partner 
had  closed  contracts  on  thirteen  thousand  heavy 
beeves  on  the  Frio  River  and  lower  Nueces,  thus 
completing  our  purchases.    A  healthy  advance  was 
noticeable  all  around  in  steer  cattle,  though  hardly 
affecting  cows ;  but  having  anticipated  a  growing 
appreciation  in  submitting  our  bids,  we  suffered 
no  disappointment.    A  week  was  lost  in  awaiting 
the  arrival  of  half  a  dozen  old  foremen.    On  their 
arrival  we  divided  them  between  us  and  intrusted 
them  with  the  buying  of  horses  and  all  details  in 
making  up  outfits. 

The  trails  leading  out  of  southern  Texas  were 
purely  local  ones,  the  only  established  trace  run 
ning  from  San  Antonio  north,  touching  at  Fort 
Griffin,  and  crossing  into  the  Nations  at  Red  River 
Station  in  Montague  County.  All  our  previous 
herds  from  the  Uvalde  regions  had  turned  east- 


250  HEED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

ward  to  intercept  this  main  thoroughfare,  though 
we  had  been  frequently  advised  to  try  a  western 
outlet   known  as  the   Nueces  Canon   route.    The 
latter  course  would  bring  us  out  on  high  tablelands, 
but  before  risking  our  herds  through  it,  I  decided 
to  ride  out  the  country  in  advance.    The  canon 
proper  was  about  forty  miles  long,  through  which 
ran  the  source  of  the  Nueces  River,  and  if  the  way 
were  barely  possible  it  looked  like  a  feasible  route. 
Taking  a  pack  horse  and  guide  with  me,  I  rode 
through  and  out  on  the  mesa   beyond.    General 
McKinzie  had  used  this  route  during  his  Indian 
campaigns,  and  had  even  built  mounds  of  rock  on 
the  hills  to  guide  the  wayfarer,  from  the  exit  of  the 
canon  across  to  the  South  Llano  River.    The  trail 
was  a  rough  one,  but  there  was  grass  sufficient  to 
sustain  the  herds  and  ample  bed-grounds  in  the 
valleys,  and  I  decided  to  try  the   western  outlet 
from  Uvalde.    An  early,  seasonable  spring  favored 
us  with  fine  grass  on  which  to  put  up  and  start 
the  herds,  all  five  moving  out  within  a  week  of 
each  other.    I  promised  my  foremen  to  accompany 
them  through  the  canon,  knowing  that  the  passage 
would  be  a  trial  to  man  and  beast,  and  asked  the 
old  bosses  to  loiter  along,  so  that  there  would  be 
but  a  few  hours'  difference  between  the  rear  and 
lead  herds. 

I  received  sixteen  thousand  cattle,  and  the  four 
days  required  in  passing  through  Nueces  Canon 


HARVEST   HOME  251 

and  reaching  water  beyond  were  the  supreme  phy 
sical  test  of  my  life.  It  was  a  wild  section,  wholly 
unsettled,  between  low  mountains,  the  river-bed 
constantly  shifting  from  one  flank  of  the  valley  to 
the  other,  while  cliffs  from  three  to  five  hundred 
feet  high  alternated  from  side  to  side.  In  travel 
ing  the  first  twenty-five  miles  we  crossed  the  bed 
of  the  river  twenty-one  times ;  and  besides  the  river 
there  were  a  great  number  of  creeks  and  dry 
arroyos  putting  in  from  the  surrounding  hills,  so 
that  we  were  constantly  crossing  rough  ground. 
The  beds  of  the  streams  were  covered  with  smooth, 
water-worn  pebbles,  white  as  marble,  and  then 
again  we  encountered  limestone  in  lava  formation, 
honeycombed  with  millions  of  sharp,  up-turned 
cells.  Some  of  the  descents  were  nearly  impossible 
for  wagons,  but  we  locked  both  hind  wheels  and 
just  let  them  slide  down  and  bounce  over  the  boul 
ders  at  the  bottom.  Half-way  through  the  canon 
the  water  failed  us,  with  the  south  fork  of  the  Llano 
forty  miles  distant  in  our  front.  We  were  com 
pelled  to  allow  the  cattle  to  pick  their  way  over 
the  rocky  trail,  the  herds  not  over  a  mile  apart, 
and  scarcely  maintaining  a  snail's  pace.  I  rode 
from  rear  to  front  and  back  again  a  dozen  times 
in  clearing  the  defile,  and  noted  that  splotches  of 
blood  from  tender-footed  cattle  marked  the  white 
pebbles  at  every  crossing  of  the  river-bed.  On  the 
evening  of  the  third  day,  the  rear  herd  passed  the 


252  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

exit  of  the  canon,  the  others  having  turned  aside 
to  camp  for  the  night.  Two  whole  days  had  now 
elapsed  without  water  for  the  cattle. 

I  had  not  slept  a  wink  the  two  previous  nights. 
The  south  fork  of  the  Llano  lay  over  twenty  miles 
distant,  and  although  it  had  ample  water  two  weeks 
before,  one  of  the  foremen  and  I  rode  through  to 
it  that  night  to  satisfy  ourselves.  The  supply  was 
found  sufficient,  and  before  daybreak  we  were  back 
in  camp,  arousing  the  outfits  and  starting  the 
herds.  In  the  spring  of  1878  the  old  military  trail, 
with  its  rocky  sentinels,  was  still  dimly  defined 
from  Nueces  Canon  north  to  the  McKinzie  water- 
hole  on  the  South  Llano.  The  herds  moved  out 
with  the  dawn.  Thousands  of  the  cattle  were  travel- 
sore,  while  a  few  hundred  were  actually  tender- 
footed.  The  evening  before,  as  we  came  out  into 
the  open  country,  we  had  seen  quite  a  local  shower 
of  rain  in  our  front,  which  had  apparently  crossed 
our  course  nearly  ten  miles  distant,  though  it  had 
not  been  noticeable  during  our  night's  ride.  The 
herds  fell  in  behind  one  another  that  morning  like 
columns  of  cavalry,  and  after  a  few  miles  their 
stiffness  passed  and  they  led  out  as  if  they  had 
knowledge  of  the  water  ahead.  Within  two  hours 
after  starting  we  crossed  a  swell  of  the  mesa,  when 
the  lead  herd  caught  a  breeze  from  off  the  damp 
hills  to  the  left  where  the  shower  had  fallen  the 
evening  before.  As  they  struck  this  rise,  the  fever- 


HARVEST  HOME  253 

ish  cattle  raised  their  heads  and  pulled  out  as  if 
that  vagrant  breeze  had  brought  them  a  message 
that  succor  and  rest  lay  just  beyond.  The  point 
men  had  orders  to  let  them  go,  and  as  fast  as  the 
rear  herds  came  up  and  struck  this  imaginary  line 
or  air  current,  a  single  moan  would  surge  back 
through  the  herd  until  it  died  out  at  the  rear.  By 
noon  there  was  a  solid  column  of  cattle  ten  miles 
long,  and  two  hours  later  the  drag  and  point  men 
had  trouble  in  keeping  the  different  herds  from 
mixing.  Without  a  halt,  by  three  o'clock  the  lead 
foremen  were  turning  their  charges  right  and  left, 
and  shortly  afterward  the  lead  cattle  were  plunging 
into  the  purling  waters  of  the  South  Llano.  The 
rear  herds  turned  off  above  and  below,  filling  the 
river  for  five  miles,  while  the  hollow-eyed  animals 
gorged  themselves  until  a  half  dozen  died  that 
evening  and  night. 

Leaving  orders  with  the  foremen  to  rest  their 
herds  well  and  move  out  half  a  day  apart,  I  rode 
night  and  day  returning  to  Uvalde.  Catching  the 
first  stage  out,  I  reached  San  Antonio  in  time  to 
overtake  Major  Hunter,  who  was  awaiting  the  arri 
val  of  the  last  beef  herd  from  the  lower  country, 
the  three  lead  ones  having  already  passed  that 
point.  All  trail  outfits  from  the  south  then  touched 
at  San  Antonio  to  provision  the  wagons,  and  on  the 
approach  of  our  last  herd  I  met  it  and  spent  half 
a  day  with  it,  —  my  first,  last,  and  only  glimpse 


,  254  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

of  our  heavy  beeves.  They  were  big  rangy  fellows, 
many  of  them  six  and  seven  years  old,  and  from 
the  general  uniformity  of  the  herd,  I  felt  proud  of 
the  cowman  that  my  protege  and  active  partner 
had  developed  into.  Major  Hunter  was  anxious  to 
reach  home  as  soon  as  possible,  in  order  to  buy  in 
our  complement  of  northern  wintered  cattle;  so, 
settling  our  business  affairs  in  southern  Texas, 
the  day  after  the  rear  beeves  passed  we  took  train 
north.  I  stopped  in  the  central  part  of  the  State, 
joining  Edwards  riding  night  and  day  in  covering 
his  appointments  to  receive  cattle ;  and  when  the 
last  trail  herd  moved  out  from  the  Colorado  River 
there  were  no  regrets. 

Hastening  on  home,  on  my  arrival  I  was  assured 
by  my  ranch  foreman  that  he  could  gather  a  trail 
herd  in  less  than  a  week.  My  saddle  stock  now 
numbered  over  a  thousand  head,  one  hundred  of 
which  were  on  the  Double  Mountain  ranch,  seven 
remudas  on  the  trail,  leaving  available  over  two 
hundred  on  the  Clear  Fork.  I  had  the  horses  and 
cattle,  and  on  the  word  being  given  my  ranch  fore 
man  began  gathering  our  oldest  steers,  while  I 
outfitted  and  provisioned  a  commissary  and  secured 
half  a  dozen  men.  On  the  morning  of  the  seventh 
day  after  my  arrival,  an  individual  herd,  number 
ing  thirty-five  hundred,  moved  out  from  the  Clear 
Fork,  every  animal  in  the  straight  ranch  brand. 
An  old  trail  foreman  was  given  charge,  Dodge  City 


HARVEST   HOME  255 

was  the  destination,  and  a  finer  herd  of  three-year- 
olds  could  not  have  been  found  in  one  brand  within 
the  boundaries  of  the '  State.  This  completed  our 
cattle  on  the  trail,  and  a  breathing  spell  of  a  few 
weeks  might  now  be  indulged  in,  yet  there  was  lit 
tle  rest  for  a  cowman.  Not  counting  the  contracts 
to  the  Indian  Bureau,  sublet  to  others,  and  the 
northern  wintered  beeves,  we  had,  for  the  firm  and 
individually,  seventeen  herds,  numbering  fifty-four 
thousand  five  hundred  cattle  on  the  trail.  In  order 
to  carry  on  our  growing  business  unhampered  for 
want  of  funds,  the  firm  had  borrowed  on  short  time 
nearly  a  quarter-million  dollars  that  spring,  pledg 
ing  the  credit  of  the  three  partners  for  its  repay 
ment.  We  had  been  making  money  ever  since  the 
partnership  was  formed,  and  we  had  husbanded  our 
profits,  yet  our  business  seemed  to  outgrow  our 
means,  compelling  us  to  borrow  every  spring  when 
buying  trail  herds. 

In  the  mean  time  and  while  we  were  gathering 
the  home  cattle,  my  foreman  and  two  men  from 
the  Double  Mountain  ranch  arrived  on  the  Clear 
Fork  to  receive  the  importation  of  bulls.  The  lat 
ter  had  not  yet  arrived,  so  pressing  the  boys  into 
work,  we  got  the  trail  herd  away  before  the  thor 
oughbreds  put  in  an  appearance.  A  wagon  and 
three  men  from  the  home  ranch  had  gone  after 
them  before  my  return,  and  they  were  simply  loaf 
ing  along,  grazing  five  to  ten  miles  a  day,  carry- 


256  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

ing  corn  in  the  wagon  to  feed  on  the  grass.  Their 
arrival  found  the  ranch  ai>  leisure,  and  after  rest 
ing  a  few  days  they  proceeded  on  to  their  desti 
nation  at  a  leisurely  gait.  The  importation  had 
wintered  finely,  —  now  all  three-year-olds,  —  but 
hereafter  they  must  subsist  on  the  range,  as  corn 
was  out  of  the  question,  and  the  boys  had  brought 
nothing  but  a  pack  horse  from  the  western  ranch. 
This  was  an  experiment  with  me,  but  I  was  ably  sec 
onded  by  my  foreman,  who  had  personally  selected 
every  cow  over  a  month  before,  and  this  was  to 
make  up  the  beginning  of  the  improved  herd.  I  ac 
companied  them  beyond  my  range  and  urged  seven 
miles  a  day  as  the  limit  of  travel.  I  then  started 
for  home,  and  within  a  week  reached  Dodge  City, 
Kansas. 

Headquarters  were  again  established  at  Dodge. 
Fortunately  a  new  market  was  being  developed  at 
Ogalalla  on  the  Platte  Eiver  in  Nebraska,  and  fully 
one  third  the  trail  herds  passed  on  to  the  upper 
point.  Before  my  arrival  Major  Hunter  had  bought 
the  deficiency  of  northern  wintered  beeves,  and 
early  in  June  three  herds  started  from  our  range 
in  the  Outlet  for  the  upper  Missouri  River  army 
posts.  We  had  wintered  all  horses  belonging  to  the 
firm  on  the  beef  ranch,  and  within  a  fortnight 
after  its  desertion,  the  young  steers  from  the  upper 
Nueces  River  began  arriving  and  were  turned  loose 
on  the  Eagle  Chief,  preempting  our  old  range.  One 


HARVEST  HOME  257 

outfit  was  retained  to  locate  the  cattle,  the  remain 
ing  ones  coming  in  to  Dodge  and  returning  home 
by  train.  George  Edwards  lent  me  valuable  assist 
ance  in  handling  our  affairs  economically,  but  with 
the  arrival  of  the  herds  at  Dodge  he  was  compelled 
to  look  after  our  sub-contracts  at  Indian  agencies. 
The  latter  were  delivered  in  our  name,  all  money 
passed  through  our  hands  in  settlement,  so  it  was 
necessary  to  have  a  man  on  the  ground  to  pro 
tect  our  interests.  With  nothing  but  the  selling 
of  eight  herds  of  cattle  in  an  active  market  like 
Dodge,  I  felt  that  the  work  of  the  summer  was 
virtually  over.  One  cattle  company  took  ten  thou 
sand  three-year-old  steers,  two  herds  were  sold  for 
delivery  at  Ogalalla,  and  the  remaining  three  were 
placed  within  a  month  after  their  arrival.  The 
occupation  of  the  West  was  on  with  a  feverish 
haste,  and  money  was  pouring  into  ranches  and 
cattle,  affording  a  ready  market  to  the  drover  from 
Texas. 

Nothing  now  remained  for  me  but  to  draw  the 
threads  of  our  business  together  and  await  the  sea 
son's  settlement  in  the  fall.  I  sold  all  the  wagons 
and  sent  the  remudas  to  our  range  in  the  Outlet, 
while  from  the  first  cattle  sold  the  borrowed  money 
was  repaid.  I  visited  Ogalalla  to  acquaint  myself 
with  its  market,  looked  over  our  beef  ranch  in  the 
Cherokee  Strip  during  the  lull,  and  even  paid  the 
different  Indian  agencies  my  respects  to  perfect 


258  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

my  knowledge  of  the  requirements  of  our  business. 
Our  firm  was  a  strong  one,  enlarging  its  business 
year  by  year ;  and  while  we  could  not  foresee  the 
future,  the  present  was  a  Harvest  Home  to  Hunter, 
Anthony  &  Co. 


CHAPTER  XVI 
AN  ACTIVE  SUMMER 

THE  summer  of  1878  closed  with  but  a  single  cloud 
on  the  horizon.  Like  ourselves,  a  great  many  cat 
tlemen  had  established  beef  ranches  in  the  Cherokee 
Outlet,  then  a  vacant  country,  paying  a  trifling 
rental  to  that  tribe  of  civilized  Indians.  But  a  dif 
ference  of  opinion  arose,  some  contending  that  the 
Cherokees  held  no  title  to  the  land ;  that  the  strip 
of  country  sixty  miles  wide  by  two  hundred  long 
set  aside  by  treaty  as  a  hunting  ground,  when  no 
longer  used  for  that  purpose  by  the  tribe,  had  re 
verted  to  the  government.  Some  refused  to  pay  the 
rent  money,  the  council  of  the  Cherokee  Nation 
appealed  to  the  general  goverment,  and  troops  were 
ordered  in  to  preserve  the  peace.  We  felt  no  un 
easiness  over  our  holdings  of  cattle  on  the  Strip,  as 
we  were  paying  a  nominal  rent,  amounting  to  two 
bits  a  head  a  year,  and  were  otherwise  fortified  in 
possession  of  our  range.  If  necessary  we  could  have 
secured  a  permit  from  the  War  Department,  on 
the  grounds  of  being  government  contractors  and 
requiring  a  northern  range  on  which  to  hold  our 
cattle.  But  rather  than  do  this,  Major  Hunter  hit 


260  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

upon  a  happy  solution  of  the  difficulty  by  suggest 
ing  that  we  employ  an  Indian  citizen  as  foreman, 
and  hold  the  cattle  in  his  name.  The  major  had 
an  old  acquaintance,  a  half-breed  Cherokee  named 
LaFlors,  who  was  promptly  installed  as  owner  of 
the  range,  but  holding  beeves  for  Hunter,  Anthony 
&  Co.,  government  beef  contractors. 

I  was  unexpectedly  called  to  Texas  before  the 
general  settlement  that  fall.  Early  in  the  summer, 
at  Dodge,  I  met  a  gentleman  who  was  representing 
a  distillery  in  Illinois.  He  was  in  the  market  for  a 
thousand  range  bulls  to  slop-feed,  and  as  no  such 
cattle  ever  came  over  the  trail,  I  offered  to  sell  them 
to  him  delivered  at  Fort  Worth.  I  showed  him  the 
sights  around  Dodge  and  we  became  quite  friendly, 
but  I  was  unable  to  sell  him  his  requirements  unless 
I  could  show  the  stock.  It  was  easily  to  be  seen 
that  he  was  not  a  range  cattleman,  and  I  humored 
him  until  he  took  my  address,  saying  that  if  he 
were  unable  to  fill  his  wants  in  other  Western 
markets  he  would  write  me  later.  The  acquaint 
ance  resulted  in  several  letters  passing  between  us 
that  autumn,  and  finally  an  appointment  was  made 
to  meet  in  Kansas  City  and  go  down  to  Texas 
together.  I  had  written  home  to  have  the  buck- 
board  meet  us  at  Fort  Worth  on  October  1,  and 
a  few  days  later  we  were  riding  the  range  on  the 
Brazos  and  Clear  Fork.  In  the  past  there  never 
had  been  any  market  for  this  class  of  drones,  old 


AN  ACTIVE   SUMMER  261 

age  and  death  being  the  only  relief,  and  from  the 
great  number  of  brands  that  I  had  purchased  dur 
ing  my  ranching  and  trail  operations,  my  range  was 
simply  cluttered  with  these  old  cumberers.  Their 
hides  would  not  have  paid  freighting  and  transpor 
tation  to  a  market,  and  they  had  become  an  actual 
drawback  to  a  ranch,  when  the  opportunity  oc 
curred  and  I  sold  twelve  hundred  head  to  the 
Illinois  distillery.  The  buyer  informed  me  that 
they  fattened  well;  that  there  was  a  special  de 
mand  for  this  quality  in  the  export  trade  of  dressed 
beef,  and  that  owing  to  their  cheapness  and  conse 
quent  profit  they  were  in  demand  for  distillery 
feeding. 

Fifteen  dollars  a  head  was  agreed  on  as  the  price, 
and  we  earned  it  a  second  time  in  delivering  that 
herd  at  Fort  Worth.  Many  of  the  animals  were 
ten  years  old,  surly  when  irritated,  and  ready  for  a 
fight  when  their  day-dreams  were  disturbed.  There 
was  no  treating  them  humanely,  for  every  effort  in 
that  direction  was  resented  by  the  old  rascals,  indi 
vidually  and  collectively.  The  first  day  we  gathered 
two  hundred,  and  the  attempt  to  hold  them  under 
herd  was  a  constant  fight,  resulting  in  every  hoof 
arising  on  the  bed-ground  at  midnight  and  escap 
ing  to  their  old  haunts.  I  worked  as  good  a  ranch 
outfit  of  men  as  the  State  ever  bred,  I  was  right 
there  in  the  saddle  with  them,  yet,  in  spite  of  every 
effort,  to  say  nothing  of  the  profanity  wasted,  we 


262  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

lost  the  herd.  The  next  morning  every  lad  armed 
himself  with  a  prod-pole  long  as  a  lance  and  tipped 
with  a  sharp  steel  brad,  and  we  commenced  regath- 
ering.  Thereafter  we  corralled  them  at  night,  which 
always  called  for  a  free  use  of  ropes,  as  a  number 
usually  broke  away  on  approaching  the  pens.  Often 
we  hog-tied  as  many  as  a  dozen,  letting  them  lie 
outside  all  night  and  freeing  them  back  into  the 
herd  in  the  morning.  Even  the  day-herding  was 
a  constant  fight,  as  scarcely  an  hour  passed  but 
some  old  resident  would  scorn  the  restraint  imposed 
upon  his  liberties  and  deliberately  make  a  break 
for  freedom.  A  pair  of  horsemen  would  double  on 
the  deserter,  and  with  a  prod-pole  to  his  ear  and 
the  pressure  of  a  man  and  horse  bearing  their 
weight  on  the  same,  a  circle  would  be  covered  and 
Toro  always  reentered  the  day-herd.  One  such 
lesson  was  usually  sufficient,  and  by  reaching  cor 
rals  every  night  and  penning  them,  we  managed, 
after  two  weeks'  hard  work,  to  land  them  in  the 
stockyards  at  Fort  Worth.  The  buyer  remained 
with  and  accompanied  us  during  the  gathering  and 
en  route  to  the  railroad,  evidently  enjoying  the  con 
tinuous  performance.  He  proved  a  good  mixer,  too, 
and  returned  annually  thereafter.  For  years  fol 
lowing  I  contracted  with  him,  and  finally  shipped 
on  consignment,  our  business  relations  always  plea 
sant  and  increasing  in  volume  until  his  death. 
Returning  with  the  outfit,  I  continued  on  west 


AN   ACTIVE   SUMMER  263 

to  the  new  ranch,  while  the  men  began  the  fall 
branding  at  home.  On  arriving  on  the  Double 
Mountain  range,  I  found  the  outfit  in  the  saddle, 
ironing  up  a  big  calf  crop,  while  the  improved  herd 
was  the  joy  and  pride  of  my  foreman.  An  altitude 
of  about  four  thousand  feet  above  sea-level  had 
proved  congenial  to  the  thoroughbreds,  who  had 
acclimated  nicely,  the  only  loss  being  one  from 
lightning.  Two  men  were  easily  holding  the  iso 
lated  herd  in  their  canon  home,  the  sheltering 
bluffs  affording  them  ample  protection  from  wintry 
weather,  and  there  was  nothing  henceforth  to  fear 
in  regard  to  the  experiment.  I  spent  a  week  with 
the  outfit ;  my  ranch  foreman  assured  me  that  the 
brand  could  turn  out  a  trail  herd  of  three-year-old 
steers  the  following  spring  and  a  second  one  of  twos, 
if  it  was  my  wish  to  send  them  to  market.  But  it 
was  too  soon  to  anticipate  the  coming  summer ;  and 
then  it  seemed  a  shame  to  move  young  steers  to  a 
northern  climate  to  be  matured,  yet  it  was  an  eco 
nomic  necessity.  Ranch  headquarters  looked  like 
a  trapper's  cave  with  wolf-skins  and  buffalo-robes 
taken  the  winter  before,  and  it  was  with  reluctance 
that  I  took  my  leave  of  the  cosy  dugouts  on  the 
Double  Mountain  Fork. 

On  returning  home  I  found  a  statement  for  the 
year  and  a  pressing  invitation  awaiting  me  to  come 
on  to  the  national  capital  at  once.  The  profits  of 
the  summer  had  exceeded  the  previous  one,  but 


264  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

some  bills  for  demurrage  remained  to  be  adjusted 
with  the  War  and  Interior  departments,  and  my 
active  partner  and  George  Edwards  had  already 
started  for  Washington.  It  was  urged  on  me  that 
the  firm  should  make  themselves  known  at  the  dif 
ferent  departments,  and  the  invitation  was  supple 
mented  by  a  special  request  from  our  silent  partner, 
the  Senator,  to  spend  at  least  a  month  at  the  capi 
tal.  For  years  I  had  been  promising  my  wife  to 
take  her  on  a  visit  to  Virginia,  and  now  when  the 
opportunity  offered,  womanlike,  she  pleaded  her 
nakedness  in  the  midst  of  plenty.  I  never  had  but 
one  suit  at  a  time  in  my  life,  and  often  I  had  seen 
my  wife  dressed  in  the  best  the  frontier  of  Texas 
afforded,  which  was  all  that  ought  to  be  expected. 
A  day's  notice  was  given  her,  the  eldest  children 
were  sent  to  their  grandparents,  and  taking  the  two 
youngest  with  us,  we  started  for  Fort  Worth.  I  was 
anxious  that  my  wife  should  make  a  favorable  im 
pression  on  my  people,  and  in  turn  she  was  fretting 
about  my  general  appearance.  Out  of  a  saddle  a 
cowman  never  looks  well,  and  every  effort  to  im 
prove  his  personal  appearance  only  makes  him  the 
more  ridiculous.  Thus  with  each  trying  to  make 
the  other  presentable,  we  started.  We  stopped 
a  week  at  my  brother's  in  Missouri,  and  finally 
reached  the  Shenanoah  Valley  during  the  last  week 
in  November.  Leaving  my  wife  to  speak  for  her 
self  and  the  remainder  of  the  family,  I  hurried 


AN  ACTIVE   SUMMER  265 

on  to  Washington  and  found  the  others  quartered 
at  a  prominent  hotel.  A  less  pretentious  one  would 
have  suited  me,  but  then  a  United  States  senator 
must  befittingly  entertain  his  friends.  New  men 
had  succeeded  to  the  War  and  Interior  departments, 
and  I  was  properly  introduced  to  each  as  the  Texas 
partner  of  the  firm  of  Hunter,  Anthony  &  Co. 
Within  a  week,  several  little  dinners  were  given  at 
the  hotel,  at  which  from  a  dozen  to  twenty  men 
sat  down,  all  feverish  to  hear  about  the  West  and 
the  cattle  business  in  particular.  Already  several 
companies  had  been  organized  to  engage  in  ranch 
ing,  and  the  capital  had  been  over-subscribed  in 
every  instance ;  and  actually  one  would  have  sup 
posed  from  the  chat  that  we  were  holding  a  cattle 
convention  in  the  West  instead  of  dining  with  a 
few  representatives  and  government  officials  at 
Washington. 

I  soon  became  the  object  of  marked  attention. 
Possibly  it  was  my  vocabulary,  which  was  consist 
ent  with  my  vocation,  together  with  my  ungainly 
appearance,  that  differentiated  me  from  my  part 
ners.  George  Edwards  was  neat  in  appearance,  had 
a  great  fund  of  Western  stories  and  experiences, 
and  the  two  of  us  were  constantly  being  importuned 
for  incidents  of  a  frontier  nature.  Both  my  part 
ners,  especially  the  Senator,  were  constantly  intro 
ducing  me  and  referring  to  me  as  a  man  who,  in  the 
course  of  ten  years,  had  accumulated  fifty  thousand 


266  KEED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

cattle  and  acquired  title  to  three  quarters  of  a  mil 
lion  acres  of  land.  I  was  willing  to  be  a  sociable 
fellow  among  my  friends,  but  notoriety  of  this 
character  was  offensive,  and  in  a  private  lecture 
I  took  my  partners  to  task  for  unnecessary  lauda 
tion.  The  matter  was  smoothed  over,  our  estimates 
for  the  coming  year  were  submitted,  and  after 
spending  the  holidays  with  my  parents  in  Virginia, 
I  returned  to  the  capital  to  await  the  allotments  for 
future  delivery  of  cattle  to  the  Army  and  Indian 
service.  Pending  the  date  of  the  opening  of  the 
bids  a  dinner  was  given  by  a  senator  from  one  of 
the  Southern  States,  to  which  all  members  of  our 
firm  were  invited,  when  the  project  was  launched 
of  organizing  a  cattle  company  with  one  million 
dollars  capital.  The  many  advantages  that  would 
accrue  where  government  influence  could  be  counted 
on  were  dwelt  upon  at  length,  the  rapid  occupation 
of  the  West  was  cited,  the  concentration  of  all 
Indian  tribes  on  reservations,  and  the  necessary  re 
quirements  of  beef  in  feeding  the  same  was  openly 
commented  on  as  the  opportunity  of  the  hour.  I 
took  no  hand  in  the  general  discussion,  except  to 
answer  questions,  but  when  the  management  of 
such  a  company  was  tendered  me,  I  emphatically 
declined.  My  partners  professed  surprise  at  my 
refusal,  but  when  the  privacy  of  our  rooms  was 
reached  I  unburdened  myself  on  the  proposition. 
We  had  begun  at  the  foot  of  the  hill,  and  now  hav- 


AN   ACTIVE   SUMMER  267 

ing  established  ourselves  in  a  profitable  business, 
I  was  loath  to  give  it  up  or  share  it  with  others. 
I  argued  that  our  trade  was  as  valuable  as  realty 
or  cattle  in  hand  ;  that  no  blandishments  of  salary 
as  manager  could  induce  me  to  forsake  legitimate 
channels  for  possibilities  in  other  fields.  "  Go  slow 
and  learn  to  peddle,"  was  the  motto  of  successful 
merchants;  I  had  got  out  on  a  limb  before  and 
met  with  failure,  and  had  no  desire  to  rush  in  where 
angels  fear  for  their  footing.  Let  others  organize 
companies  and  we  would  sell  them  the  necessary 
cattle;  the  more  money  seeking  investment  the 
better  the  market. 

Major  Hunter  was  Western  in  his  sympathies 
and  coincided  with  my  views,  the  Senator  was  won 
over  from  the  enterprise,  and  the  project  failed  to 
materialize.  The  friendly  relations  of  our  firm  were 
slightly  strained  over  the  outcome,  but  on  the  an 
nouncement  of  the  awards  we  pulled  together  again 
like  brothers.  In  the  allotment  for  delivery  during 
the  summer  and  fall  of  1879,  some  eighteen  con 
tracts  fell  to  us,  —  six  in  the  Indian  Bureau  and 
the  remainder  to  the  Army,  four  of  the  latter  re 
quiring  northern  wintered  beeves.  A  single  award 
for  Fort  Buford  in  Dakota  called  for  five  million 
pounds  on  foot  and  could  be  filled  with  Southern 
cattle.  Others  in  the  same  department  ran  from 
one  and  a  half  to  three  million  pounds,  varying,  as 
wanted  for  future  or  present  use,  to  through  or 


268  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

wintered  beeves.  The  latter  fattened  even  on  the 
trail  and  were  ready  for  the  shambles  on  their  ar 
rival,  while  Southern  stock  required  a  winter  and 
time  to  acclimate  to  reach  the  pink  of  condition. 
The  government  maintained  several  distributing 
points  in  the  new  Northwest,  one  of  which  was 
Fort  Buford,  where  for  many  succeeding  years  ten 
thousand  cattle  were  annually  received  and  as 
signed  to  lesser  posts.  This  was  the  market  that 
I  knew.  I  had  felt  every  throb  of  its  pulse  ever 
since  I  had  worked  as  a  common  hand  in  driving 
beef  to  Fort  Sumner  in  1866.  The  intervening 
years  had  been  active  ones,  and  I  had  learned  the 
lessons  of  the  trail,  knew  to  a  fraction  the  cost  of 
delivering  a  herd,  and  could  figure  on  a  contract 
with  any  other  cowman. 

Leaving  the  arrangement  of  the  bonds  to  our 
silent  partner,  the  next  day  after  the  awards  were 
announced  we  turned  our  faces  to  the  Southwest. 
February  1  was  agreed  on  for  the  meeting  at  Fort 
Worth,  so  picking  up  the  wife  and  babies  in  Vir 
ginia,  we  embarked  for  our  Texas  home.  My 
better  half  was  disappointed  in  my  not  joining  in 
the  proposed  cattle  company,  with  its  officers,  its 
directorate,  annual  meeting,  and  other  high-sound 
ing  functions.  I  could  have  turned  into  the  com 
pany  my  two  ranches  at  fifty  cents  an  acre,  could 
have  sold  my  brand  outright  at  a  fancy  figure, 
taking  stock  in  lieu  for  the  same,  but  I  preferred 


AN   ACTIVE   SUMMER  269 

to  keep  them  private  property.  I  have  since  known 
other  cowmen  who  put  their  lands  and  cattle  into 
companies,  and  after  a  few  years'  manipulation  all 
they  owned  was  some  handsome  certificates,  possi 
bly  having  drawn  a  dividend  or  two  and  held  an 
honorary  office.  I  did  not  then  have  even  the 
experience  of  others  to  guide  my  feet,  but  some 
silent  monitor  warned  me  to  stick  to  my  trade, 
cows. 

Leaving  the  family  at  the  Edwards  ranch,  I 
returned  to  Fort  Worth  in  ample  time  for  the 
appointed  meeting.  My  active  partner  and  our 
segundo  had  become  as  thick  as  thieves,  the  two 
being  inseparable  at  idle  times,  and  on  their 
arrival  we  got  down  to  business  at  once.  The 
remudas  were  the  first  consideration.  Besides  my 
personal  holdings  of  saddle  stock,  we  had  sent  the 
fall  before  one  thousand  horses  belonging  to  the 
firm  back  to  the  Clear  Fork  to  winter.  Thus 
equipped  with  eighteen  remudas  for  the  trail,  we 
were  fairly  independent  in  that  line.  Among  the 
five  herds  driven  the  year  before  to  our  beef  ranch 
in  the  Outlet,  the  books  showed  not  over  ten  thou 
sand  coming  four  years  old  that  spring,  leaving  a 
deficiency  of  northern  wintered  beeves  to  be  pur 
chased.  It  was  decided  to  restock  the  range  with 
straight  threes,  and  we  again  divided  the  buying 
into  departments,  each  taking  the  same  division  as 
the  year  before.  The  purchase  of  eight  herds  of 


270  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

heavy  beeves  would  thus  fall  to  Major  Hunter. 
Austin  and  San  Antonio  were  decided  on  as  head 
quarters  and  banking  points,  and  we  started  out 
on  a  preliminary  skirmish.  George  Edwards  had  an 
idea  that  the  Indian  awards  could  again  be  relet 
to  advantage,  and  started  for  the  capital,  while  the 
major  and  I  journeyed  on  south.  Some  former 
sellers  whom  we  accidentally  met  in  San  Antonio 
complained  that  we  had  forsaken  them  and  assured 
us  that  their  county,  Medina,  had  not  less  than 
fifty  thousand  mature  beeves.  They  offered  to 
meet  any  one's  prices,  and  Major  Hunter  urged 
that  I  see  a  sample  of  the  cattle  while  en  route  to 
the  Uvalde  country.  If  they  came  up  to  require 
ments,  I  was  further  authorized  to  buy  in  suffi 
cient  to  fill  our  contract  at  Fort  Buford,  which 
would  require  three  herds,  or  ten  thousand  head. 
It  was  an  advantage  to  have  this  delivery  start 
from  the  same  section,  hold  together  en  route,  and 
arrive  at  their  destination  as  a  unit.  I  was  sur 
prised  at  both  the  quality  and  the  quantity  of  the 
beeves  along  the  tributaries  of  the  Frio  River,  and 
readily  let  a  contract  to  a  few  leading  cowmen  for 
the  full  allotment.  My  active  partner  was  notified, 
and  I  went  on  to  the  headwaters  of  the  Nueces 
River.  I  knew  the  cattle  of  this  section  so  well  that 
there  was  no  occasion  even  to  look  at  them,  and 
in  a  few  days  contracted  for  five  herds  of  straight 
threes.  While  in  the  latter  section,  word  reached 


AN   ACTIVE   SUMMER  271 

me  that  Edwards  had  sublet  four  of  our  Indian 
contracts,  or  those  intended  for  delivery  at  agencies 
in  the  Indian  Territory.  The  remaining  two  were 
for  tribes  in  Colorado,  and  notifying  our  segundo 
to  hold  the  others  open  until  we  met,  I  took  stage 
back  to  San  Antonio.  My  return  was  awaited  by 
both  Major  Hunter  and  Edwards,  and  casting  up 
our  purchases  on  through  cattle,  we  found  we  lacked 
only  two  herds  of  cows  and  the  same  of  beeves.  I 
offered  to  make  up  the  Indian  awards  from  my 
ranches,  the  major  had  unlimited  offerings  from 
which  to  pick>  and  we  turned  our  attention  to 
securing  young  steers  for  the  open  market.  Our 
segundo  was  fully  relieved  and  ordered  back  to  his 
old  stamping-ground  on  the  Colorado  River  to  con 
tract  for  six  herds  of  young  cattle.  It  was  my  in 
tention  to  bring  remudas  down  from  the  Clear 
Fork  to  handle  the  cattle  from  Uvalde  and  Medina 
counties,  but  my  active  partner  would  have  to  look 
out  for  his  own  saddle  stock  for  the  other  beef 
herds.  Hurrying  home,  I  started  eight  hundred 
saddle  horses  belonging  to  the  firm  to  the  lower 
country,  assigned  two  remudas  to  leave  for  the 
Double  Mountain  ranch,  detailed  the  same  number 
for  the  Clear  Fork,  and  authorized  the  remaining 
six  to  report  to  Edwards  on  the  Colorado  River. 

This  completed  the  main  details  for  moving  the 
herds.  There  was  an  increase  in  prices  over  the 
preceding  spring  throughout  the  State,  amounting 


272  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

on  a  general  average  to  fully  one  dollar  a  head. 
We  had  anticipated  the  advance  in  making  our 
contracts,  there  was  an  abundance  of  water  every 
where,  and  everything  promised  well  for  an  auspi 
cious  start.  Only  a  single  incident  occurred  to  mar 
the  otherwise  pleasant  relations  with  our  ranch 
men  friends.  In  contracting  for  the  straight  threes 
from  Uvalde  County,  I  had  stipulated  that  every 
animal  tendered  must  be  full-aged  at  the  date  of  re 
ceiving  ;  we  were  paying  an  extra  price  and  the  cattle 
must  come  up  to  specifications.  Major  Hunter  had 
moved  his  herds  out  in  time  to  join  me  in  receiv 
ing  the  last  one  of  the  younger  cattle,  and  I  had 
pressed  him  into  use  as  a  tally  clerk  while  receiv 
ing.  Every  one  had  been  invited  to  turn  in  stock 
in  making  up  the  herd,  but  at  the  last  moment  we 
fell  short  of  threes,  when  I  offered  to  fill  out  with 
twos  at  the  customary  difference  in  price.  The 
sellers  were  satisfied.  We  called  them  by  ages  as 
they  were  cut  out,  when  a  row  threatened  over  a 
white  steer.  The  foreman  who  was  assisting  me  cut 
the  animal  in  question  for  a  two-year-old,  Major 
Hunter  repeated  the  age  in  tallying  the  steer,  when 
the  owner  of  the  brand,  a  small  ranchman,  galloped 
up  and  contended  that  the  steer  was  a  three-year- 
old,  though  he  Jacked  fully  two  months  of  that  age. 
The  owner  swore  the  steer  had  been  raised  a  milk 
calf ;  that  he  knew  his  age  to  a  day ;  but  Major 
Hunter  firmly  yet  kindly  told  the  man  that  he  must 


AN  ACTIVE   SUMMER  273 

observe  the  letter  of  the  contract  and  that  the  steer 
must  go  as  a  two-year-old  or  not  at  all.  In  reply 
a  six-shooter  was  thrown  in  the  major's  face,  when 
a  number  of  us  rushed  in  on  our  horses  and  the 
pistol  was  struck  from  the  man's  hand.  An  expla 
nation  was  demanded,  but  the  only  intelligent  reply 
that  could  be  elicited  from  the  owner  of  the  white 
steer  was,  "  No  G—  d —  Yankee  can  classify  my 
cattle."  One  of  the  ranchmen  with  whom  we  were 
contracting  took  the  insult  off  my  hands  and  gave 
the  man  his  choice,  —  to  fight  or  apologize.  The 
seller  cooled  down,  apologies  followed,  and  the  un 
fortunate  incident  passed  and  was  forgotten  with 
the  day's  work. 

A  week  later  the  herds  on  the  Colorado  Biver 
moved  out.  Major  Hunter  and  I  looked  them  over 
before  they  got  away,  after  which  he  continued  on 
north  to  buy  in  the  deficiency  of  three  thousand 
wintered  beeves,  while  I  returned  home  to  start 
my  individual  cattle.  The  ranch  outfit  had  been  at 
work  for  ten  days  previous  to  my  arrival  gathering 
the  three-year-old  steers  and  all  dry  and  barren  cows. 
On  my  return  they  had  about  eight  thousand  head 
of  mixed  stock  under  herd  and  two  trail  outfits  were 
in  readiness,  so  cutting  them  separate  and  culling 
them  down,  we  started  them,  the  cows  for  Dodge 
and  the  steers  for  Ogalalla,  each  thirty-five  hun 
dred  strong.  Two  outfits  had  left  for  the  Double 
Mountain  range  ten  days  before,  and  driving  night 


274  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

and  day,  I  reached  the  ranch  to  find  both  herds 
shaped  up  and  ready  for  orders.  Both  foremen 
were  anxious  to  strike  due  north,  several  herds  hav 
ing  crossed  Ked  River  as  far  west  as  Doan's  Store 
the  year  before ;  but  I  was  afraid  of  Indian  troubles 
and  routed  them  northeast  for  the  old  ford  on 
the  Chisholm  trail.  They  would  follow  down  the 
Brazos,  cross  over  to  the  Wichita  River,  and  pass 
about  sixty  miles  to  the  north  of  the  home  ranch 
on  the  Clear  Fork.  I  joined  them  for  the  first  few 
days  out,  destinations  were  the  same  as  the  other 
private  herds,  and  promising  to  meet  them  in 
Dodge,  I  turned  homeward.  The  starting  of  these 
last  two  gave  the  firm  and  me  personally  twenty- 
three  herds,  numbering  seventy-six  thousand  one 
hundred  cattle  on  the  trail. 

An  active  summer  followed.  Each  one  was  busy 
in  his  department.  I  met  Major  Hunter  once  for 
an  hour  during  the  spring  months,  and  we  never 
saw  each  other  again  until  late  fall.  Our  segundo 
again  rendered  valuable  assistance  in  meeting  out 
fits  on  their  arrival  at  the  beef  ranch,  as  it  was 
deemed  advisable  to  hold  the  through  and  wintered 
cattle  separate  for  fear  of  Texas  fever.  All  beef 
herds  were  routed  to  touch  at  headquarters  in  the 
Outlet,  and  thence  going  north,  they  skirted  the 
borders  of  settlement  in  crossing  Kansas  and  Ne 
braska.  Where  possible,  all  correspondence  was 
conducted  by  wire,  and  with  the  arrival  of  the  herds 


AN   ACTIVE   SUMMER  275 

at  Dodge  I  was  kept  in  the  saddle  thenceforth. 
The  demand  for  cattle  was  growing  with  each  suc 
ceeding  year,  prices  were  firmer,  and  a  general  ad 
vance  was  maintained  in  all  grades  of  trail  stock. 
On  the  arrival  of  the  cattle  from  the  Colorado 
Eiver,  I  had  them  reclassed,  sending  three  herds  of 
threes  on  to  Ogalalla.  The  upper  country  wanted 
older  stock,  believing  that  it  withstood  the  rigors  of 
winter  better,  and  I  trimmed  my  sail  to  catch  the 
wind.  The  cows  came  in  early  and  were  started 
west  for  their  destination,  the  rear  herds  arrived 
and  were  located,  while  Dodge  and  Ogalalla  howled 
their  advantages  as  rival  trail  towns.  The  three 
herds  of  two-year-olds  were  sold  and  started  for  the 
Cherokee  Strip,  and  I  took  train  for  the  west  and 
reached  the  Platte  River,  to  find  our  cattle  safely 
arrived  at  Ogalalla.  Near  the  middle  of  July  a 
Wyoming  cattle  company  bought  all  the  central 
Texas  steers  for  delivery  a  month  later  at  Chey 
enne,  and  we  grazed  them  up  the  South  Platte 
and  counted  them  out  to  the  buyers,  ten  thousand 
strong.  My  individual  herds  classed  as  Pan-Handle 
cattle,  exempt  from  quarantine,  netted  one  dollar 
a  head  above  the  others,  and  were  sold  to  specu 
lators  from  the  corn  regions  on  the  western  borders 
of  Nebraska.  One  herd  of  cows  was  intended  for 
the  Southern  and  the  other  for  the  Uncompahgre 
Utes,  and  they  had  been  picking  their  way  through 
and  across  the  mountains  to  those  agencies  during 


276  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

the  summer  months.  Late  in  August  both  deliv 
eries  were  made  wholesale  to  the  agents  of  the  dif 
ferent  tribes,  and  my  work  was  at  an  end.  All 
unsold  remudas  returned  to  Dodge,  the  outfits  were 
sent  home,  and  the  saddle  stock  to  our  beef  ranch, 
there  to  await  the  close  of  the  summer's  drive. 


CHAPTER  XVII 
FORESHADOWS 

I  RETURNED  to  Texas  early  in  September.  My 
foreman  on  the  Double  Mountain  ranch  had  writ 
ten  me  several  times  during  the  summer,  promising 
me  a  surprise  on  the  half-blood  calves.  There  was 
nothing  of  importance  in  the  North  except  the 
shipping  of  a  few  trainloads  of  beeves  from  our 
ranch  in  the  Outlet,  and  as  the  bookkeeper  could 
attend  to  that,  I  decided  to  go  back.  I  offered 
other  excuses  for  going,  but  home-hunger  and  the 
improved  herd  were  the  main  reasons.  It  was  a 
fortunate  thing  that  I  went  home,  for  it  enabled 
me  to  get  into  touch  with  the  popular  feeling 
in  my  adopted  State  over  the  outlook  for  live 
stock  in  the  future.  Up  to  this  time  there  had 
been  no  general  movement  in  cattle,  in  sympathy 
with  other  branches  of  industry,  notably  in  sheep 
and  wool,  supply  always  far  exceeding  demand. 
There  had  been  a  gradual  appreciation  in  market 
able  steers,  first  noticeable  in  1876,  and  gaining 
thereafter  about  one  dollar  a  year  per  head  on  all 
grades,  yet  so  slowly  as  not  to  disturb  or  excite  the 
trade.  During  the  fall  of  1879,  however,  there 


278  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

was  a  feeling  of  unrest  in  cattle  circles  in  Texas, 
and  predictions  of  a  notable  advance  could  be 
heard  on  every  side.  The  trail  had  been  established 
as  far  north  as  Montana,  capital  by  the  millions 
was  seeking  investment  in  ranching,  and  everything 
augured  for  a  brighter  future.  That  very  summer 
the  trail  had  absorbed  six  hundred  and  fifty  thou 
sand  cattle,  or  possibly  ten  per  cent  of  the  home 
supply,  which  readily  found  a  market  at  army 
posts,  Indian  agencies,  and  two  little  cow  towns  in 
the  North.  Investment  in  Texas  steers  was  paying 
fifty  to  one  hundred  per  cent  annually,  the  whole 
Northwest  was  turning  into  one  immense  pasture, 
and  the  feeling  was  general  that  the  time  had  come 
for  the  Lone  Star  State  to  expect  a  fair  share  in  the 
profits  of  this  immense  industry. 

Cattle  associations,  organized  for  mutual  pro 
tection  and  the  promotion  of  community  inter 
ests,  were  active  agencies  in  enlarging  the  Texas 
market.  National  conventions  were  held  annually, 
at  which  every  live-stock  organization  in  the  West 
was  represented,  and  buyer  and  seUer  met  on  com 
mon  ground.  Two  years  before  the  Cattle  Kaisers' 
Association  of  Texas  was  formed,  other  States  and 
Territories  founded  similar  organizations,  and  when 
these  met  in  national  assembly  the  cattle  on  a 
thousand  hills  were  represented.  No  one  was  more 
anxious  than  myself  that  a  proper  appreciation 
should  follow  the  enlargement  of  our  home  market, 


FORESHADOWS  279 

yet  I  had  hopes  that  it  would  come  gradually  and 
not  excite  or  disturb  settled  conditions.  In  our 
contracts  with  the  government,  we  were  under  the 
necessity  of  anticipating  the  market  ten  months  in 
advance,  and  any  sudden  or  unseen  change  in  prices 
in  the  interim  between  submitting  our  estimates  and 
buying  in  the  cattle  to  fill  the  same  would  be  ruin 
ous.  Therefore  it  was  important  to  keep  a  finger 
on  the  pulse  of  the  home  market,  to  note  the  drift 
of  straws,  and  to  listen  for  every  rumor  afloat. 
Lands  in  Texas  were  advancing  in  value,  a  general 
wave  of  prosperity  had  followed  self-government 
and  the  building  of  railroads,  and  cattle  alone  was 
the  only  commodity  that  had  not  proportionally 
risen  in  value. 

In  spite  of  my  hopes  to  the  contrary,  I  had  a 
well-grounded  belief  that  a  revolution  in  cattle 
prices  was  coming.  Daily  meeting  with  men  from 
the  Northwest,  at  Dodge  and  Ogalalla,  during  the 
summer  just  passed,  I  had  felt  every  throb  of  the 
demand  that  pulsated  those  markets.  There  was  a 
general  inquiry  for  young  steers,  she  stuff  with 
which  to  start  ranches  was  eagerly  snapped  up,  and 
it  stood  to  reason  that  if  this  reckless  Northern  de 
mand  continued,  its  influence  would  soon  be  felt 
on  the  plains  of  Texas.  Susceptible  to  all  these 
influences,  I  had  returned  home  to  find  both  my 
ranches  littered  with  a  big  calf  crop,  the  brand  ac 
tually  increasing  in  numbers  in  spite  of  the  drain 


280  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

of  trail  herds  annually  cut  out.  But  the  idol  of 
my  eye  was  those  half-blood  calves.  Out  of  a  pos 
sible  five  hundred,  there  were  four  hundred  and 
fifty  odd  by  actual  count,  all  big  as  yearlings  and 
reflecting  the  selection  of  their  parents.  I  loafed 
away  a  week  at  the  canon  camp,  rode  through  them 
daily,  and  laughed  at  their  innocent  antics  as  they 
horned  the  bluffs  or  fought  their  mimic  fights.  The 
Double  Mountain  ranch  was  my  pride,  and  before 
leaving,  the  foreman  and  I  outlined  some  landed 
additions  to  fill  and  square  up  my  holdings,  in  case 
it  should  ever  be  necessary  to  fence  the  range. 

On  my  return  to  the  Clear  Fork,  the  ranch  out 
fit  had  just  finished  gathering  from  my  own  and 
adjoining  ranges  fifteen  hundred  bulls  for  distillery 
feeding.  The  sale  had  been  effected  by  correspond 
ence  with  my  former  customer,  and  when  the  herd 
started  the  two  of  us  drove  on  ahead  into  Fort 
Worth.  The  Illinois  man  was  an  extensive  dealer 
in  cattle  and  had  followed  the  business  for  years  in 
his  own  State,  and  in  the  week  we  spent  together 
awaiting  the  arrival  of  his  purchase,  I  learned 
much  of  value.  There  was  a  distinct  difference  be 
tween  a  range  cowman  and  a  stockman  from  the 
older  Western  States ;  but  while  the  occupations 
were  different,  there  was  much  in  common  between 
the  two.  Through  my  customer  I  learned  that 
Western  range  cattle,  when  well  fatted,  were  com 
peting  with  grass  beeves  from  his  own  State ;  that 


FORESHADOWS  281 

they  dressed  more  to  their  gross  weight  than  na 
tives,  and  that  the  quality  of  their  flesh  was  unsur 
passed.  As  to  the  future,  the  Illinois  buyer  could 
see  little  to  hope  for  in  his  own  country,  but  was  en 
thusiastic  over  the  outlook  for  us  ranchmen  in  the 
Southwest.  All  these  things  were  but  straws  which 
foretold  the  course  of  the  wind,  yet  neither  of  us 
looked  for  the  cyclone  which  was  hovering  near. 

I  accompanied  the  last  train  of  the  shipment  as 
far  as  Parsons,  Kansas,  where  our  ways  parted,  my 
customer  going  to  Peoria,  Illinois,  while  I  continued 
on  to  The  Grove.  Both  my  partners  and  our  se- 
gundo  were  awaiting  me,  the  bookkeeper  had  all 
accounts  in  hand,  and  the  profits  of  the  year  were 
enough  to  turn  ordinary  men's  heads.  But  I  sounded 
a  note  of  warning,  —  that  there  were  breakers 
ahead,  —  though  none  of  them  took  me  seriously 
until  I  called  for  the  individual  herd  accounts. 
With  all  the  friendly  advantages  shown  us  by  the 
War  and  Interior  departments,  the  six  herds  from 
the  Colorado  River,  taking  their  chances  in  the 
open  market,  had  cleared  more  money  per  head 
than  had  the  heavy  beeves  requiring  thirty-three 
per  cent  a  larger  investment.  In  summing  up  my 
warning,  I  suggested  that  now,  while  we  were  win 
ners,  would  be  a  good  time  to  drop  contracting 
with  the  government  and  confine  ourselves  strictly 
to  the  open  market.  Instead  of  ten  months  be 
tween  assuming  obligations  and  their  fulfillment, 


282  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

why  not  reduce  the  chances  to  three  or  four,  with 
the  hungry,  clamoring  West  for  our  market  ? 

The  powwow  lasted  several  days.  Finally  all 
agreed  to  sever  our  dealings  with  the  Interior  De 
partment,  which  required  cows  for  Indian  agen 
cies,  and  confine  our  business  to  the  open  market 
and  supplying  the  Army  with  beef.  Our  partner 
the  Senator  reluctantly  yielded  to  the  opinions  of 
Major  Hunter  and  myself,  urging  our  loss  of  pres 
tige  and  its  reflection  on  his  standing  at  the  na 
tional  capital.  But  we  countered  on  him,  arguing 
that  as  a  representative  of  the  West  the  opportu 
nity  of  the  hour  was  his  to  insist  on  larger  estimates 
for  the  coming  year,  and  to  secure  proportionate 
appropriations  for  both  the  War  and  Interior  de 
partments,  if  they  wished  to  attract  responsible 
bidders.  If  only  the  ordinary  estimates  and  allow 
ances  were  made,  it  would  result  in  a  deficiency  in 
these  departments,  and  no  one  cared  for  vouchers, 
even  against  the  government,  when  the  funds  were 
not  available  to  meet  the  same  on  presentation. 
Major  Hunter  suggested  to  our  partner  that  as 
beef  contractors  we  be  called  in  consultation  with 
the  head  of  each  department,  and  allowed  to  offer 
our  views  for  the  general  benefit  of  the  service. 
The  Senator  saw  his  opportunity,  promising  to 
hasten  on  to  Washington  at  once,  while  the  rest  of 
us  agreed  to  hold  ourselves  in  readiness  to  respond 
to  any  call. 


FORESHADOWS  283 

Edwards  and  I  returned  to  Texas.  The  former 
was  stationed  for  the  winter  at  San  Antonio,  under 
instructions  to  keep  in  touch  with  the  market, 
while  I  loitered  between  Fort  Worth  and  the  home 
ranch.  The  arrival  of  the  list  of  awards  came 
promptly  as  usual,  but  beyond  a  random  glance 
was  neglected  pending  state  developments.  An  ad 
vance  of  two  dollars  and  a  half  a  head  was  pre 
dicted  on  all  grades,  and  buyers  and  superintend 
ents  of  cattle  companies  in  the  North  and  West 
were  quietly  dropping  down  into  Texas  for  the 
winter,  inquiring  for  and  offering  to  contract  cattle 
for  spring  delivery  at  Dodge  and  Ogalalla.  I  was 
quietly  resting  on  my  oars  at  the  ranch,  when  a 
special  messenger  arrived  summoning  me  to  Wash 
ington.  The  motive  was  easily  understood,  and 
on  my  reaching  Fort  Worth  the  message  was  sup 
plemented  by  another  one  from  Major  Hunter, 
asking  me  to  touch  at  Council  Grove  en  route. 
Writing  Edwards  fully  what  would  be  expected 
of  him  during  my  absence,  I  reached  The  Grove 
and  was  joined  by  my  partner,  and  we  proceeded 
on  to  the  national  capital.  Arriving  fully  two 
weeks  in  advance  of  the  closing  day  for  bids,  all 
three  of  us  called  and  paid  our  respects  to  the 
heads  of  the  War  and  Interior  departments.  On 
special  request  of  the  Secretaries,  an  appointment 
was  made  for  the  following  day,  when  the  Sen 
ator  took  Major  Hunter  and  me  under  his  wing 


284  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

and  coached  us  in  support  of  his  suggestions  to 
either  department.  There  was  no  occasion  to  warn 
me,  as  I  had  just  come  from  the  seat  of  beef  sup 
ply,  and  knew  the  feverish  condition  of  affairs  at 
home. 

The  appointments  were  kept  promptly.  At  the 
Interior  Department  we  tarried  but  a  few  minutes 
after  informing  the  Secretary  that  we  were  sub 
mitting  no  bids  that  year  in  his  division,  but  allowed 
ourselves  to  be  drawn  out  as  to  the  why  and  where 
fore.  Major  Hunter  was  a  man  of  moderate  school 
ing,  apt  in  conversation,  and  did  nearly  all  the 
talking,  though  I  put  in  a  few  general  observations. 
We  were  cordially  greeted  at  the  War  Office,  good 
cigars  were  lighted,  and  we  went  over  the  situation 
fully.  The  reports  of  the  year  before  were  gone 
over,  and  we  were  complimented  on  our  different 
deliveries  to  the  Army.  We  accepted  all  flatteries 
as  a  matter  of  course,  though  the  past  is  poor  se 
curity  for  the  future.  When  the  matter  of  con 
tracting  for  the  present  year  was  broached,  we 
confessed  our  ability  to  handle  any  awards  in  our 
territory  to  the  number  of  fifty  to  seventy-five 
thousand  beeves,  but  would  like  some  assurance 
that  the  present  or  forthcoming  appropriations 
would  be  ample  to  meet  all  contracts.  Our  doubts 
were  readily  removed  by  the  firmness  of  the  Secre 
tary  when  as  we  arose  to  leave,  Major  Hunter  sug 
gested,  by  way  of  friendly  advice,  that  the  govern- 


FORESHADOWS  285 

ment  ought  to  look  well  to  the  bonds  of  contrac 
tors,  saying  that  the  beef-producing  regions  of  the 
West  and  South  had  experienced  an  advance  in 
prices  recently,  which  made  contracting  cattle  for 
future  delivery  extremely  hazardous.  At  parting 
regret  was  expressed  that  the  sudden  change  in 
affairs  would  prevent  our  submitting  estimates  only 
so  far  as  we  had  the  cattle  in  hand. 

Three  days  before  the  limit  expired,  we  submitted 
twenty  bids  to  the  War  Department.  Our  figures 
were  such  that  we  felt  fully  protected,  as  we  had 
twenty  thousand  cattle  on  our  Northern  range, 
while  advice  was  reaching  us  daily  from  the  beef 
regions  of  Texas.  The  opening  of  proposals  was  no 
surprise,  only  seven  falling  to  us,  and  all  admit 
ting  of  Southern  beeves.  Within  an  hour  after  the 
result  was  known,  a  wire  was  sent  to  Edwards, 
authorizing  him  to  contract  immediately  for  twenty- 
two  thousand  heavy  steer  cattle  and  advance  money 
liberally  on  every  agreement.  Duplicates  of  our 
estimates  had  been  sent  him  the  same  day  they 
were  submitted  at  the  War  Office.  Our  segundo 
had  triple  the  number  of  cattle  in  sight,  and  was 
then  in  a  position  to  act  intelligently.  The  next 
morning  Major  Hunter  and  I  left  the  capital  for 
San  Antonio,  taking  a  southern  route  through  Vir 
ginia,  sighting  old  battlefields  where  both  had  seen 
service  on  opposing  sides,  but  now  standing  shoul 
der  to  shoulder  as  trail  drovers  and  army  contrac- 


286  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

tors.  We  arrived  at  our  destination  promptly. 
Edwards  was  missing,  but  inquiry  among  our 
bankers  developed  the  fact  that  he  had  been  draw 
ing  heavily  the  past  few  days,  and  we  knew  that 
all  was  well.  A  few  nights  later  he  came  in,  hav 
ing  secured  our  requirements  at  an  advance  of  two 
to  three  dollars  a  head  over  the  prices  of  the  pre 
ceding  spring. 

The  live-stock  interests  of  the  State  were  cen 
tring  in  the  coming  cattle  convention,  which  would 
be  held  at  Fort  Worth  in  February.  At  this  meet 
ing  heavy  trading  was  anticipated  for  present  and 
future  delivery,  and  any  sales  effected  would  estab 
lish  prices  for  the  coming  spring.  From  the  number 
of  Northern  buyers  that  were  in  Texas,  and  others 
expected  at  the  convention,  Edwards  suggested 
buying,  before  the  meeting,  at  least  half  the  re 
quirements  for  our  beef  ranch  and  trail  cattle. 
Major  Hunter  and  I  both  fell  in  with  the  idea  of 
our  segundo,  and  we  scattered  to  our  old  haunts 
under  agreement  to  report  at  Fort  Worth  for  the 
meeting  of  the  clans.  I  spent  two  weeks  among 
my  ranchmen  friends  on  the  headwaters  of  the 
Frio  and  Nueces  rivers,  and  while  they  were  fully 
awake  to  the  advance  in  prices,  I  closed  trades 
on  twenty-one  thousand  two  and  three  year  old 
steers  for  March  delivery.  It  was  always  a  weak 
ness  in  me  to  overbuy,  and  in  receiving  I  could 
never  hold  a  herd  down  to  the  agreed  numbers,  but 


FORESHADOWS  287 

my  shortcomings  in  this  instance  proved  a  boon. 
On  arriving  at  Fort  Worth,  the  other  two  reported 
having  combed  their  old  stamping-grounds  of  half 
a  dozen  counties  along  the  Colorado  River,  and 
having  secured  only  fifteen  thousand  head.  Every 
one  was  waiting  until  after  the  cattle  convention, 
and  only  those  who  had  the  stock  in  hand  could  be 
induced  to  talk  business  or  enter  into  agreements. 
The  convention  was  a  notable  affair.  Men  from 
Montana  and  intervening  States  and  Territories 
rubbed  elbows  and  clinked  their  glasses  with  the 
Texans  to  "  Here  's  to  a  better  acquaintance." 
The  trail  drovers  were  there  to  a  man,  the  very 
atmosphere  was  tainted  with  cigar  smoke,  the  only 
sounds  were  cattle  talk,  and  the  nights  were  wild 
and  sleepless.  "  I  '11  sell  ten  thousand  Pan-Han 
dle  three-year-old  steers  for  delivery  at  Ogalalla," 
spoken  in  the  lobby  of  a  hotel  or  barroom,  would 
instantly  attract  the  attention  of  half  a  dozen  men 
in  fur  overcoats  and  heavy  flannel.  "  What  are 
your  cattle  worth  laid  down  on  the  Platte  ? "  was 
the  usual  rejoinder,  followed  by  a  drink,  a  cigar, 
and  a  conference,  sometimes  ending  in  a  deal  or 
terminating  in  a  friendly  acquaintance.  I  had 
met  many  of  these  men  at  Abilene,  Wichita,  and 
Great  Bend,  and  later  at  Dodge  City  and  Ogalalla, 
and  now  they  had  invaded  Texas,  and  the  son  of  a 
prophet  could  not  foretell  the  future.  Our  firm 
never  offered  a  hoof,  but  the  three  days  of  the 


288  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

convention  were  forewarnings  of  the  next  few  years 
to  follow.  I  was  personally  interested  in  the  gen 
eral  tendency  of  the  men  from  the  upper  country 
to  contract  for  heifers  and  young  cows,  and  while 
the  prices  offered  for  Northern  delivery  were  a  dis 
tinct  advance  over  those  of  the  summer  before,  I 
resisted  all  temptations  to  enter  into  agreements. 
The  Northern  buyers  and  trail  drovers  selfishly 
joined  issues  in  bearing  prices  in  Texas ;  yet,  in 
spite  of  their  united  efforts,  over  two  hundred 
thousand  cattle  were  sold  during  the  meeting,  and 
at  figures  averaging  fully  three  dollars  a  head  over 
those  of  the  previous  spring. 

The  convention  adjourned,  and  those  in  attend 
ance  scattered  to  their  homes  and  business.  Be 
tween  midnight  and  morning  of  the  last  day  of  the 
meeting,  Major  Hunter  and  I  closed  contracts  for 
two  trail  herds  of  sixty-five  hundred  head  in  Erath 
and  Comanche  counties.  Within  a  week  two  others 
of  straight  three-year-olds  were  secured,  —  one  in 
my  home  county  and  the  other  fifty  miles  north 
west  in  Throckmorton.  This  completed  our  pur 
chases  for  the  present,  giving  us  a  chain  of  cattle 
to  receive  from  within  one  county  of  the  Eio 
Grande  on  the  south  to  the  same  distance  from 
Red  River  on  the  north.  The  work  was  divided 
into  divisions.  One  thousand  extra  saddle  horses 
were  needed  for  the  beef  herds  and  others,  and 
men  were  sent  south  to  secure  them.  All  private 


FORESHADOWS  289 

and  company  remudas  had  returned  to  the  Clear 
Fork  to  winter,  and  from  there  would  be  issued 
wherever  we  had  cattle  to  receive.  A  carload  of 
wagons  was  bought  at  the  Fort,  teams  were  sent  in 
after  them,  and  a  busy  fortnight  followed  in  organ 
izing  the  forces.  Edwards  was  assigned  to  assist 
Major  Hunter  in  receiving  the  beef  cattle  along  the 
lower  Frio  and  Nueces,  starting  in  ample  time  to 
receive  the  saddle  stock  in  advance  of  the  beeves. 
There  was  three  weeks'  difference  in  the  starting 
of  grass  between  northern  and  southern  Texas,  and 
we  made  our  dates  for  receiving  accordingly,  mine 
for  Medina  and  Uvalde  counties  following  on  the 
heels  of  the  beef  herds  from  the  lower  country. 

From  the  12th  of  March  I  was  kept  in  the  saddle 
ten  days,  receiving  cattle  from  the  headwaters  of 
the  Frio  and  Nueces  rivers.  All  my  old  foremen 
rendered  valuable  assistance,  two  and  three  herds 
being  in  the  course  of  formation  at  a  time,  and,  as 
usual,  we  received  eleven  hundred  over  and  above 
the  contracts.  The  herds  moved  out  on  good  grass 
and  plenty  of  water,  the  last  of  the  heavy  beeves 
had  passed  north  on  my  return  to  San  Antonio, 
and  I  caught  the  first  train  out  to  join  the  others 
in  central  Texas.  My  buckboard  had  been  brought 
down  with  the  remudas  and  was  awaiting  me  at 
the  station,  the  Colorado  River  on  the  west  was 
reached  that  night,  and  by  noon  the  next  day  I  was  in 
the  thick  of  the  receiving.  When  three  herds  had 


290  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

started,  I  reported  in  Comanche  and  Erath  coun 
ties,  where  gathering  for  our  herds  was  in  progress  ; 
and  fixing  definite  dates  that  would  allow  Edwards 
and  my  partner  to  arrive,  I  drove  on  through 
to  the  Clear  Fork.  Under  previous  instructions,  a 
herd  of  thirty-five  hundred  two-year-old  heifers  was 
ready  to  start,  while  nearly  four  thousand  steers 
were  in  hand,  with  one  outfit  yet  to  come  in  from 
up  the  Brazos.  We  were  gathering  close  that  year, 
everything  three  years  old  or  over  must  go,  and  the 
outfits  were  ranging  far  and  wide.  The  steer  herd 
was  held  down  to  thirty-two  hundred,  both  it  and 
the  heifers  moving  out  the  same  day,  with  a  rem 
nant  of  over  a  thousand  three-year-old  steers  left 
over. 

The  herd  under  contract  to  the  firm  in  the  home 
county  came  up  full  in  number,  and  was  the  next 
to  get  away.  A  courier  arrived  from  the  Double 
Mountain  range  and  reported  a  second  contingent 
of  heifers  ready,  but  that  the  steers  would  overrun 
for  a  wieldy  herd.  The  next  morning  the  overplus 
from  the  Clear  Fork  was  started  for  the  new  ranch, 
with  orders  to  make  up  a  third  steer  herd  and  cross 
Eed  River  at  Doan's.  This  cleaned  the  boards  on 
my  ranches,  and  the  next  day  I  was  in  Throck- 
morton  County,  where  everything  was  in  readiness 
to  pass  upon.  This  last  herd  was  of  Clear  Fork 
cattle,  put  up  within  twenty-five  miles  of  Fort 
Griffin,  every  brand  as  familiar  as  my  own,  and 


FORESHADOWS  291 

there  was  little  to  do  but  count  and  receive.  Road- 
branding  was  necessary,  however;  and  while  this 
work  was  in  progress,  a  relay  messenger  arrived 
from  the  ranch,  summoning  me  to  Fort  Worth 
posthaste.  The  message  was  from  Major  Hunter, 
and  from  the  hurried  scribbling  I  made  out  that 
several  herds  were  tied  up  when  ready  to  start,  and 
that  they  would  be  thrown  on  the  market.  I  hur 
ried  home,  changed  teams,  and  by  night  and  day 
driving  reached  Fort  Worth  and  awakened  my  ac 
tive  partner  and  Edwards  out  of  their  beds  to  get 
the  particulars.  The  responsible  man  of  a  firm  of 
drovers,  with  five  herds  on  hand,  had  suddenly 
died,  and  the  banks  refused  to  advance  the  neces 
sary  funds  to  complete  their  payments.  The  cattle 
were  under  herd  in  Wise  and  Cook  counties,  both 
Major  Hunter  and  our  segundo  had  looked  them 
over,  and  both  pronounced  the  herds  gilt-edged 
north  Texas  steers.  It  would  require  three  hundred 
thousand  dollars  to  buy  and  clear  the  herds,  and 
all  our  accounts  were  already  overdrawn,  but  it 
was  decided  to  strain  our  credit.  The  situation 
was  fully  explained  in  a  lengthy  message  to  a  bank 
in  Kansas  City,  the  wires  were  kept  busy  all  day 
answering  questions ;  but  before  the  close  of  busi 
ness  we  had  authority  to  draw  for  the  amount 
needed,  and  the  herds,  with  remudas  and  outfits 
complete,  passed  into  our  hands  and  were  started 
the  next  day.  This  gave  the  firm  and  me  person- 


292  KEED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

ally  thirty-three  herds,  requiring  four  hundred  and 
ninety-odd  men  and  over  thirty-five  hundred  horses, 
while  the  cattle  numbered  one  hundred  and  four 
thousand  head. 

Two  thirds  of  the  herds  were  routed  by  way  of 
Doan's  Crossing  in  leaving  Texas,  while  all  would 
touch  at  Dodge  in  passing  up  the  country.  George 
Edwards  accompanied  the  north  Texas  herds,  and 
Major  Hunter  hastened  on  to  Kansas  City  to  pro 
tect  our  credit,  while  I  hung  around  Doan's  Store 
until  our  last  cattle  crossed  Red  River.  The  annual 
exodus  from  Texas  to  the  North  was  on  with  a  fury, 
and  on  my  arrival  at  Dodge  all  precedents  in  former 
prices  were  swept  aside  in  the  eager  rush  to  secure 
cattle.  Herds  were  sold  weeks  before  their  arrival, 
others  were  met  as  far  south  as  Camp  Supply,  and 
it  was  easily  to  be  seen  that  it  was  a  seller's  market. 
Two  thirds  of  the  trail  herds  merely  took  on  new 
supplies  at  Dodge  and  passed  on  to  the  Platte. 
Once  our  heavy  beeves  had  crossed  the  Arkansas, 
my  partner  and  I  swung  round  to  Ogalalla  and 
met  our  advance  herd,  the  foreman  of  which  re 
ported  meeting  buyers  as  far  south  as  the  Repub 
lican  River.  It  was  actually  dangerous  to  price 
cattle  for  fear  of  being  under  the  market;  new 
classifications  were  being  introduced,  Pan-Handle 
and  north  Texas  steers  commanding  as  much  as 
three  dollars  a  head  over  their  brethren  from  the 
coast  and  far  south. 


FORESHADOWS  293 

The  boom  in  cattle  of  the  early  '80's  was  on 
with  a  vengeance.  There  was  no  trouble  to  sell 
herds  that  year.  One  morning,  while  I  was  looking 
for  a  range  on  the  north  fork  of  the  Platte,  Major 
Hunter  sold  my  seven  thousand  heifers  at  twenty- 
five  dollars  around,  commanding  two  dollars  and  a 
half  a  head  over  steers  of  the  same  age.  Edwards 
had  been  left  in  charge  at  Dodge,  and  my  active 
partner  reluctantly  tore  himself  away  from  the 
market  at  Ogalalla  to  attend  our  deliveries  of  beef 
at  army  posts.  Within  six  weeks  after  arriving 
at  Dodge  and  Ogalalla  the  last  of  our  herds  had 
changed  owners,  requiring  another  month  to  com 
plete  the  transfers  at  different  destinations.  Many 
of  the  steers  went  as  far  north  as  the  Yellowstone 
Kiver,  and  Wyoming  and  Nebraska  were  liberal 
buyers  at  the  upper  market,  while  Colorado,  Kansas, 
and  the  Indian  Territory  absorbed  all  offerings  at 
the  lower  point.  Horses  were  even  in  demand,  and 
while  we  made  no  effort  to  sell  our  remudas,  over 
half  of  them  changed  owners  with  the  herds  they 
had  accompanied  into  the  North. 

The  season  closed  with  a  flourish.  After  we  had 
wound  up  our  affairs,  Edwards  and  I  drifted  down 
to  the  beef  ranch  with  the  unsold  saddle  stock,  and 
the  shipping  season  opened.  The  Santa  Fe  Kail- 
way  had  built  south  to  Caldwell  that  spring,  afford 
ing  us  a  nearer  shipping  point,  and  we  moved  out 
five  to  ten  trainloads  a  week  of  single  and  double 


294  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

•wintered  beeves.  The  through  cattle  for  restocking 
the  range  had  arrived  early  and  were  held  sepa 
rate  until  the  first  frost,  when  everything  would  be 
turned  loose  on  the  Eagle  Chief.  Trouble  was  still 
brewing  between  the  Cherokee  Nation  and  the 
government  on  the  one  side  and  those  holding  cattle 
in  the  Strip,  and  a  clash  occurred  that  fall  between 
a  lieutenant  of  cavalry  and  our  half-breed  foreman 
LaFlors.  The  troops  had  been  burning  hay  and 
destroying  improvements  belonging  to  cattle  out 
fits,  and  had  paid  our  range  a  visit  and  mixed 
things  with  our  foreman.  The  latter  stood  firm  on 
his  rights  as  a  Cherokee  citizen  and  cited  his  em 
ployers  as  government  beef  contractors,  but  the 
young  lieutenant  haughtily  ignored  all  statements 
and  ordered  the  hay,  stabling,  and  dug-outs  burned. 
Like  a  flash  of  light,  LaFlors  aimed  a  six-shooter 
at  the  officer's  breast,  and  was  instantly  covered  by 
a  dozen  carbines  in  the  hands  of  troopers. 

"  Order  them  to  shoot  if  you  dare,"  smilingly 
said  the  Cherokee  to  the  young  lieutenant,  a  cocked 
pistol  leveled  at  the  latter's  heart,  "  and  she  goes 
double.  There  isn't  a  man  under  you  can  pull 
a  trigger  quicker  than  I  can."  The  hay  was  not 
burned,  and  the  stabling  and  dug-outs  housed  our 
men  and  horses  for  several  winters  to  come. 


CHAPTER   XVIII 
THE  BEGINNING  OF  THE  BOOM 

THE  great  boom  in  cattle  which  began  in  1880 
and  lasted  nearly  five  years  was  the  beginning  of 
a  ruinous  end.  The  frenzy  swept  all  over  the 
northern  and  western  half  of  the  United  States, 
extended  into  the  British  possessions  in  western 
Canada,  and  in  the  receding  wave  the  Texan  forgot 
the  pit  from  which  he  was  lifted  and  bowed  down 
and  worshiped  the  living  calf.  During  this  brief 
period  the  great  breeding  grounds  of  Texas  were 
tested  to  their  utmost  capacity  to  supply  the  de 
mand,  the  canebrakes  of  Arkansas  and  Louisiana 
were  called  upon  for  their  knotty  specimens  of  the 
bovine  race,  even  Mexico  responded,  and  still  the 
insatiable  maw  of  the  early  West  called  for  more 
cattle.  The  whirlpool  of  speculation  and  investment 
in  ranches  and  range  stock  defied  the  deserts  on 
the  west,  sweeping  across  into  New  Mexico  and 
Arizona,  where  it  met  a  counter  wave  pushing  in 
land  from  California  to  possess  the  new  and  invit 
ing  pastures.  Naturally  the  Texan  was  the  last  to 
catch  the  enthusiasm,  but  when  he  found  his  herds 
depleted  to  a  remnant  of  their  former  numbers,  he 


296  KEED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

lost  his  head  and  plunged  into  the  vortex  with  the 
impetuosity  of  a  gambler.  Pasture  lands  that  he 
had  scorned  at  ten  cents  an  acre  but  a  decade  be 
fore  were  eagerly  sought  at  two  and  three  dollars, 
and  the  cattle  that  he  had  bartered  away  he  bought 
back  at. double  and  triple  their  former  prices. 

How  I  ever  weathered  those  years  without  be 
coming  bankrupt  is  un explainable.  No  credit  or 
foresight  must  be  claimed,  for  the  opinions  of  men 
and  babes  were  on  a  parity;  yet  I  am  inclined  to 
think  it  was  my  dread  of  debt,  coupled  with  an 
innate  love  of  land  and  cattle,  that  saved  me  from 
the  almost  universal  fate  of  my  fellow  cowmen. 
Due  acknowledgment  must  be  given  my  partners, 
for  while  I  held  them  in  check  in  certain  directions, 
the  soundness  of  their  advice  saved  my  feet  from 
many  a  stumble.  Major  Hunter  was  an  unusually 
shrewd  man,  a  financier  of  the  rough  and  ready 
Western  school;  and  while  we  made  our  mistakes, 
they  were  such  as  human  foresight  could  not  have 
avoided.  Nor  do  I  withhold  a  word  of  credit  from 
our  silent  partner,  the  Senator,  who  was  the  key 
stone  to  the  arch  of  Hunter,  Anthony  &  Co.,  stand 
ing  in  the  shadow  in  our  beginning  as  trail  drovers, 
backing  us  with  his  means  and  credit,  and  fighting 
valiantly  for  our  mutual  interests  when  the  firm 
met  its  Waterloo. 

The  success  of  our  drive  for  the  summer  of  1880 
changed  all  plans  for  the  future.  I  had  learned 


THE   BEGINNING   OF   THE   BOOM      297 

that  percentage  was  my  ablest  argument  in  suggest 
ing  a  change  of  policy,  and  in  casting  up  accounts 
for  the  year  we  found  that  our  heavy  beeves  had 
paid  the  least  in  the  general  investment.  The  bank 
ing  instincts  of  my  partners  were  unerring,  and  in 
view  of  the  open  market  that  we  had  enjoyed  that 
summer  it  was  decided  to  withdraw  from  further 
contracting  with  the  government.  Our  profits  for 
the  year  were  dazzling,  and  the  actual  growth  of  our 
beeves  in  the  Outlet  was  in  itself  a  snug  fortune, 
while  the  five  herds  bought  at  the  eleventh  hour 
cleared  over  one  hundred  thousand  dollars,  mere 
pin-money.  I  hurried  home  to  find  that  fortune 
favored  me  personally,  as  the  Texas  and  Pacific 
Eailway  had  built  west  from  Fort  Worth  during 
the  summer  as  far  as  Weatherford,  while  the  sur 
vey  on  westward  was  within  easy  striking  distance 
of  both  my  ranches.  My  wife  was  dazed  and  de 
lighted  over  the  success  of  the  summer's  drive,  and 
when  I  offered  her  the  money  with  which  to  build  a 
fine  house  at  Fort  Worth,  she  balked,  but  consented 
to  employ  a  tutor  at  the  ranch  for  the  children. 

I  had  a  little  leisure  time  on  my  hands  that  fall. 
Activity  in  wild  lands  was  just  beginning  to  be  felt 
throughout  the  State,  and  the  heavy  holders  of  scrip 
were  offering  to  locate  large  tracts  to  suit  the  con 
venience  of  purchasers.  Several  railroads  held  im 
mense  quantities  of  scrip  voted  to  them  as  bonuses, 
all  the  charitable  institutions  of  the  State  were  en- 


298  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

dowed  with  liberal  grants,  and  the  great  bulk  of 
certificates  issued  during  the  Reconstruction  re 
gime  for  minor  purposes  had  fallen  into  the  hands 
of  shrewd  speculators.  Among  the  latter  was  a 
Chicago  firm,  who  had  opened  an  office  at  Fort 
Worth  and  employed  a  corps  of  their  own  surveyors 
to  locate  lands  for  customers.  They  held  millions  of 
acres  of  scrip,  and  I  opened  negotiations  with  them 
to  survey  a  number  of  additions  to  my  Double 
Mountain  range.  Valuable  water-fronts  were  be 
coming  rather  scarce,  and  the  legislature  had  re 
cently  enacted  a  law  setting  apart  every  alternate 
section  of  land  for  the  public  schools,  out  of  which 
grew  the  State's  splendid  system  of  education. 
After  the  exchange  of  a  few  letters,  I  went  to 
Fort  Worth  and  closed  a  contract  with  the  Chi 
cago  firm  to  survey  for  my  account  three  hundred 
thousand  acres  adjoining  my  ranch  on  the  Salt 
and  Double  Mountain  forks  of  the  Brazos.  In  my 
own  previous  locations,  the  water-front  and  valley 
lands  were  all  that  I  had  coveted,  the  tracts  not 
even  adjoining,  the  one  on  the  Salt  Fork  lying  like 
a  boot,  while  the  lower  one  zigzagged  like  a  stair 
way  in  following  the  watercourse.  The  prices 
agreed  on  were  twenty  cents  an  acre  for  arid  land, 
forty  for  medium,  and  sixty  for  choice  tracts, 
every  other  section  to  be  set  aside  for  school  pur 
poses  in  compliance  with  the  law.  My  foreman 
would  designate  the  land  wanted,  and  the  firm 


THE   BEGINNING   OF   THE   BOOM      299 

agreed  to  put  an  outfit  of  surveyors  into  the  field 
at  once. 

My  two  ranches  were  proving  a  valuable  source 
of  profit.  After  starting  five  herds  of  seventeen 
thousand  cattle  on  the  trail  that  spring,  and  ship 
ping  on  consignment  fifteen  hundred  bulls  to  dis 
tilleries  that  fall,  we  branded  nineteen  thousand 
five  hundred  calves  on  the  two  ranges.  In  spite  of 
the  heavy  drain,  the  brand  was  actually  growing  in 
numbers,  and  as  long  as  it  remained  an  open  coun 
try  I  had  ample  room  for  my  cattle  even  on  the 
Clear  Fork.  Each  stock  was  in  splendid  shape,  as 
the  culling  of  the  aging  and  barren  of  both  sexes 
to  Indian  agencies  and  distilleries  had  preserved 
the  brand  vigorous  and  productive.  The  first  few 
years  of  its  establishment  I  am  satisfied  that  the 
Double  Mountain  ranch  increased  at  the  rate  of 
ninety  calves  to  the  hundred  cows,  and  once  the 
Clear  Fork  range  was  rid  of  its  drones,  a  similar 
ratio  was  easily  maintained  on  that  range.  There 
was  no  such  thing  as  counting  one's  holdings ;  the 
increase  only  was  known,  and  these  conclusions, 
with  due  allowance  for  their  selection,  were  arrived 
at  from  the  calf  crop  of  the  improved  herd.  Its 
numbers  were  known  to  an  animal,  all  chosen  for 
their  vigor  and  thrift,  the  increase  for  the  first  two 
years  averaging  ninety-four  per  cent. 

There  is  little  rest  for  the  wicked  and  none  for 
a  cowman.  I  was  planning  an  enjoyable  winter, 


300  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

hunting  with  my  hounds,  when  the  former  proposi 
tion  of  organizing  an  immense  cattle  company  was 
revived  at  Washington.  Our  silent  partner  was 
sought  on  every  hand  by  capitalists  eager  for  in 
vestment  in  Western  enterprises,  and  as  cattle  were 
absorbing  general  attention  at  the  time,  the  tend 
ency  of  speculation  was  all  one  way.  The  same  old 
crowd  that  we  had  turned  down  two  winters  before 
was  behind  the  movement,  and  as  certain  predic 
tions  that  were  made  at  that  time  by  Major  Hunter 
and  myself  had  since  come  true,  they  were  all  the 
more  anxious  to  secure  our  firm  as  associates.  Our 
experience  and  resultant  profits  from  wintering 
cattle  in  southern  Kansas  and  the  Cherokee  Strip 
were  well  known  to  the  Senator,  and,  to  judge  from 
his  letters  and  frequent  conversations,  he  was 
envied  by  his  intimate  acquaintances  in  Congress. 
In  the  revival  of  the  original  proposition  it  was 
agreed  that  our  firm  might  direct  the  management 
of  the  enterprise,  all  three  of  us  to  serve  on  the 
directorate  and  to  have  positions  on  the  executive 
committee.  This  sounded  reasonable,  and  as  there 
was  a  movement  on  foot  to  lease  the  entire  Chero 
kee  Outlet  from  that  Nation,  if  an  adequate  range 
could  be  secured,  such  a  cattle  company  as  sug 
gested  ought  to  be  profitable. 

Major  Hunter  and  I  were  a  unit  in  business 
matters,  and  after  an  exchange  of  views  by  letter, 
it  was  agreed  to  run  down  to  the  capital  and  hold 


THE   BEGINNING  OF  THE   BOOM     301 

a  conference  with  the  promoters  of  the  proposed 
company.  My  parents  were  aging  fast,  and  now 
that  I  was  moderately  wealthy  it  was  a  pleasure 
to  drop  in  on  them  for  a  week  and  hearten  their 
declining  years.  Accordingly  with  the  expectation 
of  combining  filial  duty  and  business,  I  took  Ed 
wards  with  me  and  picked  up  the  major  at  his 
home,  and  the  trio  of  us  journeyed  eastward.  I 
was  ten  days  late  in  reaching  Washington.  It  was 
the  Christmas  season  in  the  valley  ;  every  darky 
that  our  family  ever  owned  renewed  his  acquaint 
ance  with  Mars'  Reed,  and  was  remembered  in  a 
way  befitting  the  season.  The  recess  for  the  holi 
days  was  over  on  my  reaching  the  capital,  yet  in 
the  mean  time  a  crude  outline  of  the  proposed  com 
pany  was  under  consideration.  On  the  advice  of 
our  silent  partner,  who  well  knew  that  his  business 
associates  were  slightly  out  of  their  element  at 
social  functions  and  might  take  alarm,  all  banquets 
were  cut  out,  and  we  met  in  little  parties  at  cafes 
and  swell  barrooms.  In  the  course  of  a  few  days 
all  the  preliminaries  were  agreed  on,  and  a  general 
conference  was  called. 

Neither  my  active  partner  nor  myself  was  an  ora 
tor,  but  we  had  coached  the  silent  member  of  the 
firm  to  act  in  our  behalf.  The  Senator  was  a  flowery 
talker,  and  in  prefacing  his  remarks  he  delved  into 
antiquity,  mentioning  the  Aryan  myth  wherein  the 
drifting  clouds  were  supposed  to  be  the  cows  of  the 


302  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

gods,  driven  to  and  from  their  feeding  grounds. 
Coming  down  to  a  later  period,  he  referred  to  cattle 
being  figured  on  Egyptian  monuments  raised  two 
thousand  years  before  the  Christian  era,  and  to  the 
important  part  they  were  made  to  play  in  Greek 
and  Roman  mythology.  Referring  to  ancient  bib 
lical  times,  he  dwelt  upon  the  pastoral  existence 
of  the  old  patriarchs,  as  they  peacefully  led  their 
herds  from  sheltered  nook  to  pastures  green.  Pass 
ing  down  and  through  the  cycles  of  change  from 
ancient  to  modern  times,  he  touched  upon  the  re 
lation  of  cattle  to  the  food  supply  of  the  world,  and 
finally  the  object  of  the  meeting  was  reached.  In 
few  and  concise  words,  an  outline  of  the  proposed 
company  was  set  forth,  its  objects  and  limitations. 
A  pound  of  beef,  it  was  asserted,  was  as  staple  as  a 
loaf  of  bread,  the  production  of  the  one  was  as  sim 
ple  as  the  making  of  the  other,  and  both  were  looked 
upon  equally  as  the  staff  of  life.  Other  remarks  of 
a  general  nature  followed.  The  capital  was  limited 
to  one  million  dollars,  though  double  the  capitaliza 
tion  could  have  been  readily  placed  at  the  first 
'  meeting.  Satisfactory  committees  were  appointed 
on  organization  and  other  preliminary  steps,  and 
books  were  opened  for  subscriptions.  Deference 
was  shown  our  firm,  and  I  subscribed  the  same 
amount  as  my  partners,  except  that  half  my  sub 
scription  was  made  in  the  name  of  George  Ed 
wards,  as  I  wanted  him  on  the  executive  com- 


THE   BEGINNING   OF   THE   BOOM      303 

mittee  if  the  company  ever  got  beyond  its  present 
embryo  state.  The  trio  of  us  taking  only  one 
hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars,  there  was  a 
general  scramble  for  the  remainder. 

The  preliminary  steps  having  been  taken,  no 
thing  further  could  be  done  until  a  range  was  se 
cured.  My  active  partner,  George  Edwards,  and 
myself  were  appointed  on  this  committee,  and  pro 
mising  to  report  at  the  earliest  convenience,  we 
made  preparations  for  returning  West.  A  change 
of  administration  was  approaching,  and  before  leav 
ing  the  capital,  Edwards,  my  partners,  and  myself 
called  on  Secretaries  Schurz  of  the  Interior  De 
partment  and  Ramsey  of  the  War  Department. 
We  had  done  an  extensive  business  with  both 
departments  in  the  past,  and  were  anxious  to  learn 
the  attitude  of  the  government  in  regard  to  leasing 
lands  from  the  civilized  Indian  nations.  A  lease 
for  the  Cherokee  Outlet  was  pending,  but  for  lack 
of  precedent  the  retiring  Secretary  of  the  Interior, 
for  fear  of  reversal  by  the  succeeding  administra 
tion,  lent  only  a  qualified  approval  of  the  same. 
There  were  six  million  acres  of  land  in  the  Outlet, 
a  splendid  range  for  maturing  beef,  and  if  an 
adequate-sized  ranch  could  be  secured  the  new 
company  could  begin  operations  at  once.  The 
Cherokee  Nation  was  anxious  to  secure  a  just 
rental,  an  association  had  offered  $200,000  a  year 
for  the  Strip,  and  all  that  was  lacking  was  a  single 


304  KEED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

word  of  indorsement  from    the  paternal   govern 
ment. 

Hoping  that  the  incoming  administration  would 
take  favorable  action  permitting  civilized  Indian 
tribes  to  lease  their  surplus  lands,  we  returned  to 
our  homes.  The  Cherokee  Strip  Cattle  Association 
had  been  temporarily  organized  some  time  pre 
vious,  —  not  being  chartered,  however,  until  March, 
1883,  —  and  was  the  proposed  lessee  of  the  Outlet 
in  which  our  beef  ranch  lay.  The  organization  was 
a  local  one,  created  for  the  purpose  of  removing  all 
friction  between  the  Cherokees  and  the  individual 
holders  of  cattle  in  the  Strip.  The  officers  and 
directors  of  the  association  were  all  practical  cat 
tlemen,  owners  of  herds  and  ranges  in  the  Outlet, 
paying  the  same  rental  as  others  into  the  general 
treasury  of  the  organization.  Major  Hunter  was 
well  acquainted  with  the  officers,  and  volunteered 
to  take  the  matter  up  at  once,  by  making  applica 
tion  in  person  for  a  large  range  in  the  Cherokee 
Strip.  There  was  no  intention  on  the  part  of  our 
firm  to  forsake  the  trail,  this  cattle  company  being 
merely  a  side  issue,  and  active  preparations  were 
begun  for  the  coming  summer. 

The  annual  cattle  convention  would  meet  again 
in  Fort  Worth  in  February.  With  the  West  for 
our  market  and  Texas  the  main  source  of  supply, 
there  was  no  occasion  for  any  delay  in  placing  our 
contracts  for  trail  stock.  The  closing  figures  ob- 


THE   BEGINNING   OF  THE  BOOM      305 

tainable  at  Dodge  and  Ogalalla  the  previous  sum 
mer  had  established  a  new  scale  of  prices  for  Texas, 
and  a  buyer  must  either  pay  the  advance  or  let  the 
cattle  alone.  Edwards  and  I  were  in  the  field  fully 
three  weeks  before  the  convention  met,  covering 
our  old  buying  grounds  and  venturing  into  new 
ones,  advancing  money  liberally  on  all  contracts, 
and  returning  to  the  meeting  with  thirty  herds 
secured.  Major  Hunter  met  us  at  the  convention, 
and  while  nothing  definite  was  accomplished  in 
securing  a  range,  a  hopeful  word  had  reached  us 
in  regard  to  the  new  administration.  Starting  the 
new  company  that  spring  was  out  of  the  question, 
and  all  energies  were  thrown  into  the  forthcoming 
drive.  Kepresentatives  from  the  Northwest  again 
swept  down  on  the  convention,  all  Texas  was  there, 
and  for  three  days  and  nights  the  cattle  interests 
carried  the  keys  of  the  city.  Our  firm  offered 
nothing,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  bought  three  herds 
of  Pan-Handle  steers  for  acceptance  early  in  April. 
Three  weeks  of  active  work  were  required  to 
receive  the  cattle,  the  herds  starting  again  with 
the  grass.  My  individual  contingent  included  ten 
thousand  three-year-old  steers,  two  full  herds  of 
two-year-old  heifers,  and  seven  thousand  cows. 
The  latter  were  driven  in  two  herds ;  extra  wagons 
with  oxen  attached  accompanied  each  in  order  to 
save  the  calves,  as  a  youngster  was  an  assistance 
in  selling  an  old  cow.  Everything  was  routed  by 


306  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

Doan's  Crossing,  both  Edwards  and  myself  accom 
panying  the  herds,  while  Major  Hunter  returned 
as  usual  by  rail.  The  new  route,  known  as  the 
Western  trail,  was  more  direct  than  the  Chisholm, 
though  beset  by  Comanche  and  Kiowa  Indians, 
once  powerful  tribes,  but  now  little  more  than  beg 
gars.  The  trip  was  nearly  featureless,  except  that 
during  a  terrible  storm  on  Big  Elk,  a  number  of 
Indians  took  shelter  under  and  around  one  of  our 
wagons  and  a  squaw  was  killed  by  lightning.  For 
some  unaccountable  reason  the  old  dame  defied  the 
elements  and  had  climbed  up  on  a  water  barrel 
which  was  ironed  to  the  side  of  the  commissary 
wagon,  when  the  bolt  struck  her  and  she  tumbled 
off  dead  among  her  people.  The  incident  created 
quite  a  commotion  among  the  Indians,  who  set  up 
a  keening,  and  the  husband  of  the  squaw  refused 
to  be  comforted  until  I  gave  him  a  stray  cow,  when 
he  smiled  and  asked  for  a  bill  of  sale  so  that  he 
could  sell  the  hide  at  the  agency.  I  shook  my  head, 
and  the  cook  told  him  in  Spanish  that  no  one  but 
the  owner  could  give  a  bill  of  sale,  when  he  looked 
reproachfully  at  me  and  said,  "  Mebby  so  you  steal 
him." 

I  caught  a  stage  at  Camp  Supply  and  reached 
Dodge  a  week  in  advance  of  the  herds.  Major 
Hunter  was  awaiting  me  with  the  report  that  our 
application  for  an  extra  lease  in  the  Cherokee  Strip 
had  been  refused.  Those  already  holding  cattle  in 


THE  BEGINNING  OF  THE   BOOM      307 

the  Outlet  were  to  retain  their  old  grazing  grounds, 
and  as  we  had  no  more  range  than  we  needed  for 
the  firm's  holding  of  stock,  we  must  look  elsewhere 
to  secure  one  for  the  new  company.  A  movement 
was  being  furthered  in  Washington,  however,  to 
secure  a  lease  from  the  Cheyenne  and  Arapahoe 
tribes,  blanket  Indians,  whose  reservation  lay  just 
south  of  the  Strip,  near  the  centre  of  the  Territory 
and  between  the  Chisholm  and  Western  trails. 
George  Edwards  knew  the  country,  having  issued 
cows  at  those  agencies  for  several  summers,  and 
reported  the  country  well  adapted  for  ranging 
cattle.  We  had  a  number  of  congressmen  and  sev 
eral  distinguished  senators  in  our  company,  and  if 
there  was  such  a  thing  as  pulling  the  wires  with 
the  new  administration,  there  was  little  doubt  but 
it  would  be  done.  Kirkwood  of  Iowa  had  suc 
ceeded  Schurz  in  the  Interior  Department,  and  our 
information  was  that  he  would  at  least  approve  of 
any  lease  secured.  We  were  urged  at  the  earliest 
opportunity  to  visit  the  Cheyenne  and  Arapahoe 
agency,  and  open  negotiations  with  the  ruling 
chiefs  of  those  tribes.  This  was  impossible  just  at 
present,  for  with  forty  herds,  numbering  one  hun 
dred  and  twenty-six  thousand  cattle,  on  the  trail 
and  for  our  beef  ranch,  a  busy  summer  lay  before 
us.  Edwards  was  dispatched  to  meet  and  turn  off 
the  herds  intended  for  our  range  in  the  Outlet, 
Major  Hunter  proceeded  on  to  Ogalalla,  while  I 


308  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

remained  at  Dodge  until  the  last  cattle  arrived  or 
passed  that  point. 

The  summer  of  1881  proved  a  splendid  market 
for  the  drover.    Demand  far  exceeded  supply  and 
prices  soared  upward,  while  she  stuff  commanded  a 
premium  of  three  to  five  dollars  a  head  over  steers 
of  the  same   age.     Pan-Handle  and  north  Texas 
cattle  topped  the  market,  their  quality  easily  classi 
fying  them  above  Mexican,  coast,  and  southern 
breeding.    Herds   were  sold  and  cleared  out  for 
their  destination  almost  as  fast  as  they  arrived; 
the  Old  West  wanted  the  cattle  and  had  the  range 
and  to  spare,  all  of  which  was  a  tempered  wind 
to  the  Texas  drover.    I  spent  several  months  in 
Dodge,  shaping  up  our  herds  as  they  arrived,  and 
sending  the  majority  of  them  on  to  Ogalalla.    The 
cows  were  the  last  to  arrive  on  the  Arkansas,  and 
they  sold  like  pies  to  hungry  boys,  while  all  the 
remainder  of  my  individual  stock  went  on  to  the 
Platte  and  were  handled  by  our  segundo  and  my 
active  partner.    Near  the  middle  of  the  summer  I 
closed  up  our  affairs  at  Dodge,  and,  taking  the 
assistant  bookkeeper  with  me,  moved  up  to  Oga 
lalla.    Shortly  after  my  arrival  there,  it  was  neces 
sary  to  send  a  member  of  the  firm  to  Miles  City, 
on  the  Yellowstone   River    in   Montana,  and  the 
mission  fell  to  me.    Major  Hunter  had  sold  twenty 
thousand  threes  for  delivery  at  that  point,  and  the 
cattle  were  already  en  route  to  their  destination  on 


THE   BEGINNING  OF  THE   BOOM     309 

my  arrival.  I  took  train  and  stage  and  met  the 
herds  on  the  Yellowstone. 

On  my  return  to  Ogalalla  the  season  was  draw 
ing  to  a  feverish  close.  All  our  cattle  were  sold, 
the  only  delay  being  in  deliveries  and  settlements. 
Several  of  our  herds  were  received  on  the  Platte, 
but,  as  it  happened,  nearly  all  our  sales  were 
effected  with  new  cattle  companies,  and  they  had 
too  much  confidence  in  the  ability  of  the  Texas 
outfits  to  deliver  to  assume  the  risk  themselves. 
Everything  was  fish  to  our  net,  and  if  a  buyer  had 
insisted  on  our  delivering  in  Canada,  I  think  Major 
Hunter  would  have  met  the  request  had  the  price 
been  satisfactory.  We  had  the  outfits  and  horses, 
and  our  men  were  plainsmen  and  were  at  home  as 
long  as  they  could  see  the  north  star.  Edwards 
attended  a  delivery  on  the  Crazy  Woman  in  Wyo 
ming,  Major  Hunter  made  a  trip  for  a  similar  pur 
pose  to  the  Niobrara  in  Nebraska,  and  various  trail 
foremen  represented  the  firm  at  minor  deliveries. 
All  trail  business  was  closed  before  the  middle  of 
September,  the  bookkeepers  made  up  their  final 
statements,  and  we  shook  hands  all  round  and 
broke  the  necks  of  a  few  bottles. 

But  the  climax  of  the  year's  profits  came  from 
the  beef  ranch  in  the  Outlet.  The  Eastern  markets 
were  clamoring  for  well-fatted  Western  stock,  and 
we  sent  out  train  after  train  of  double  wintered 
beeves  that  paid  one  hundred  per  cent  profit  on 


310  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

every  year  we  had  held  them.  The  single  wintered 
cattle  paid  nearly  as  well,  and  in  making  ample 
room  for  the  through  steers  we  shipped  out  eigh 
teen  thousand  head  from  our  holdings  on  the  Eagle 
Chief.  The  splendid  profits  from  maturing  beeves 
on  Northern  ranges  naturally  made  us  anxious  to 
start  the  new  company.  We  were  doing  fairly  well 
as  a  firm  and  personally,  and  with  our  mastery  of 
the  business  it  was  but  natural  that  we  should 
enlarge  rather  than  restrict  our  operations.  There 
had  been  no  decrease  of  the  foreign  capital,  princi 
pally  Scotch  and  English,  for  investment  in  ranges 
and  cattle  in  the  West  during  the  summer  just 
past,  and  it  was  contrary  to  the  policy  of  Hunter, 
Anthony  &  Co.  to  take  a  backward  step.  The 
frenzy  for  organizing  cattle  companies  was  on  with 
a  fury,  and  half-breed  Indians  and  squaw-men, 
with  rights  on  reservations,  were  in  demand  as 
partners  in  business  or  as  managers  of  cattle  syn 
dicates. 

An  amusing  situation  developed  during  the  sum 
mer  of  1881  at  Dodge.  The  Texas  drovers  formed 
a  social  club  and  rented  and  furnished  quarters, 
which  immediately  became  the  rendezvous  of  the 
wayfaring  mavericks.  Cigars  and  refreshments 
were  added,  social  games  introduced,  and  in  bur 
lesque  of  the  general  craze  of  organizing  stock 
companies  to  engage  in  cattle  ranching,  our  club 
adopted  the  name  of  The  Juan-Jinglero  Cattle 


THE   BEGINNING   OF   THE   BOOM      311 

Company,  Limited.  The  capital  stock  was  placed 
at  five  million,  full-paid  and  non-assessable,  with 
John  T.  Lytle  as  treasurer,  R.  G.  Head  as  secre 
tary,  Jess  Pressnall  as  attorney,  Captain  E.  G. 
Millet  as  fiscal  agent  for  placing  the  stock,  and  a 
dozen  leading  drovers  as  vice-presidents,  while  the 
presidency  fell  to  me.  We  used  the  best  of  printed 
stationery,  and  all  the  papers  of  Kansas  City  and 
Omaha  innocently  took  it  up  and  gave  the  new 
cattle  company  the  widest  publicity.  The  promoters 
of  the  club  intended  it  as  a  joke,  but  the  promi 
nence  of  its  officers  fooled  the  outside  public,  and 
applications  began  to  pour  in  to  secure  stock  in 
the  new  company.  No  explanation  was  offered, 
but  all  applications  were  courteously  refused,  on 
the  ground  that  the  capital  was  already  over-sub 
scribed.  All  members  were  freely  using  the  club 
stationery,  thus  daily  advertising  us  far  and  wide, 
while  no  end  of  jokes  were  indulged  in  at  the  ex 
pense  of  the  burlesque  company.  For  instance, 
Major  Seth  Mabry  left  word  at  the  club  to  forward 
his  mail  to  Kansas  City,  care  of  Armour's  Bank, 
as  he  expected  to  be  away  from  Dodge  for  a  week. 
No  sooner  had  he  gone  than  every  member  of  the 
club  wrote  him  a  letter,  in  care  of  that  popular 
bank,  addressing  him  as  first  vice-president  and 
director  of  The  Juan-Jinglero  Cattle  Company. 
While  attending  to  business  Major  Mabry  was 
hourly  honored  by  bankers  and  intimate  friends 


312  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

desiring  to  secure  stock  in  the  company,  to  all  of 
whom  he  turned  a  deaf  ear,  but  kept  the  secret. 
"  I  told  the  boys,"  said  Major  Seth  on  his  return, 
"  that  our  company  was  a  close  corporation,  and 
unless  we  increased  the  capital  stock,  there  was  no 
hope  of  them  getting  in  on  the  ground  floor." 

In  Dodge  practical  joking  was  carried  to  the 
extreme,  both  by  citizens  and  cowmen.  One  night 
a  tipsy  foreman,  who  had  just  arrived  over  the 
trail,  insisted  on  going  the  rounds  with  a  party  of 
us,  and  in  order  to  shake  him  we  entered  a  variety 
theatre,  where  my  maudlin  friend  soon  fell  asleep 
in  his  seat.  The  rest  of  us  left  the  theatre,  and  after 
seeing  the  sights  I  wandered  back  to  the  vaudeville, 
finding  the  performance  over  and  my  friend  still 
sound  asleep.  I  awoke  him,  never  letting  him 
know  that  I  had  been  absent  for  hours,  and  after 
rubbing  his  eyes  open,  he  said  :  "  Reed,  is  it  all 
over?  No  dance  or  concert?  They  give  a  good 
show  here,  don't  they  ?  " 


CHAPTER  XIX 

THE  CHEYENNE  AND  ARAPAHOE  CATTLE 
COMPANY 

THE  assassination  of  President  Garfield  tempora 
rily  checked  our  plans  in  forming  the  new  cattle 
company.  Kirkwood  of  the  Interior  Department  was 
disposed  to  be  friendly  to  all  Western  enterprises, 
but  our  advices  from  Washington  anticipated  a  re 
organization  of  the  cabinet  under  Arthur.  Senator 
Teller  was  slated  to  succeed  Kirkwood,  and  as  there 
was  no  question  about  the  former  being  fully  in 
sympathy  with  everything  pertaining  to  the  West, 
every  one  interested  in  the  pending  project  lent  his 
influence  in  supporting  the  Colorado  man  for  the  In 
terior  portfolio.  Several  senators  and  any  number 
of  representatives  were  subscribers  to  our  company, 
and  by  early  fall  the  outlook  was  so  encouraging 
that  we  concluded  at  least  to  open  negotiations  for 
a  lease  on  the  Cheyenne  and  Arapahoe  reservation. 
A  friendly  acquaintance  was  accordingly  to  be  cul 
tivated  with  the  Indian  agent  of  these  tribes.  George 
Edwards  knew  him  personally,  and,  well  in  advance 
of  Major  Hunter  and  myself,  dropped  down  to  the 
agency  and  made  known  his  errand.  There  were 


314  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

already  a  number  of  cattle  being  held  on  the  reser 
vation  by  squaw-men,  sutlers,  contractors,  and  other 
army  followers  stationed  at  Fort  Reno.  The  latter 
ignored  all  rights  of  the  tribes,  and  even  collected 
a  rental  from  outside  cattle  for  grazing  on  the  re 
servation,  and  were  naturally  antagonistic  to  any 
interference  with  their  personal  plans.  There  had 
been  more  or  less  friction  between  the  Indian  agent 
and  these  usurpers  of  the  grazing  privileges,  and  a 
proposition  to  lease  a  million  acres  at  an  annual 
rental  of  fifty  thousand  dollars  at  once  met  with 
the  sanction  of  the  agent.  Major  Hunter  and  I 
were  notified  of  the  outlook,  and  at  the  close  of  the 
beef-shipping  season  we  took  stage  for  the  Chey 
enne  and  Arapahoe  Agency.  Our  segundo  had 
thoroughly  ridden  over  the  country,  the  range  was 
a  desirable  one,  and  we  soon  came  to  terms  with 
the  agent.  He  was  looked  upon  as  a  necessary 
adjunct  to  the  success  of  our  company,  a  small  block 
of  stock  was  set  aside  for  his  account,  while  his 
usefulness  in  various  ways  would  entitle  his  name 
to  grace  the  salary  list.  For  the  present  the  oppo 
sition  of  the  army  followers  was  to  be  ignored,  as 
no  one  gave  them  credit  for  being  able  to  thwart  our 
plans. 

The  Indian  agent  called  the  head  men  of  the  two 
tribes  together.  The  powwow  was  held  at  the  sum 
mer  encampment  of  the  Cheyennes,  and  the  prin 
cipal  chiefs  of  the  Arapahoes  were  present.  A  beef 


CHEYENNE  AND  ARAPAHOE  COMPANY  315 

was  barbecued  at  our  expense,  and  a  great  deal  of 
good  tobacco  was  smoked.  Aside  from  the  agent, 
we  employed  a  number  of  interpreters ;  the  council 
lasted  two  days,  and  on  its  conclusion  we  held  a  five 
years'  lease,  with  the  privilege  of  renewal,  on  a  mil 
lion  acres  of  as  fine  grazing  land  as  the  West  could 
boast.  The  agreement  was  signed  by  every  chief 
present,  and  it  gave  us  the  privilege  to  fence  our 
range,  build  shelter  and  stabling  for  our  men  and 
horses,  and  otherwise  equip  ourselves  for  ranching. 
The  rental  was  payable  semiannually  in  advance, 
to  begin  with  the  occupation  of  the  country  the  fol 
lowing  spring,  and  both  parties  to  the  lease  were 
satisfied  with  the  terms  and  conditions.  In  the 
territory  allotted  to  us  grazed  two  small  stocks  of 
cattle,  one  of  which  had  comfortable  winter  shelters 
on  Quartermaster  Creek.  Our  next  move  was  to 
buy  both  these  brands  and  thus  gain  the  good  will 
of  the  only  occupants  of  the  range.  Possession  was 
given  at  once,  and  leaving  Edwards  and  a  few  men 
to  hold  the  range,  the  major  and  I  returned  to 
Kansas  and  reported  our  success  to  Washington. 

The  organization  was  perfected,  and  The  Chey 
enne  and  Arapahoe  Cattle  Company  began  operations 
with  all  the  rights  and  privileges  of  an  individual. 
One  fourth  of  the  capital  stock  was  at  once  paid 
into  the  hands  of  the  treasurer,  the  lease  and  cattle 
on  hand  were  transferred  to  the  new  company,  and 
the  executive  committee  began  operations  for  the 


316  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

future.  Barbed  wire  by  the  carload  was  purchased 
sufficient  to  build  one  hundred  miles  of  four-strand 
fence,  and  arrangements  were  made  to  have  the 
same  freighted  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  inland 
by  wagon  from  the  railway  terminal  to  the  new 
ranch  on  Quartermaster  Creek.  Contracts  were  let 
to  different  men  for  cutting  the  posts  and  building 
the  fence,  and  one  of  the  old  trail  bosses  came  on 
from  Texas  and  was  installed  as  foreman  of  the 
new  range.  The  first  meeting  of  stockholders  — 
for  permanent  organization  —  was  awaiting  the 
convenience  of  the  Western  contingent ;  and  once 
Edwards  was  relieved,  he  and  Major  Hunter  took 
my  proxy  and  went  on  to  the  national  capital. 
Every  interest  had  been  advanced  to  the  farthest 
possible  degree :  surveyors  would  run  the  lines,  the 
posts  would  be  cut  and  hauled  during  the  winter, 
and  by  the  first  of  June  the  fences  would  be  up  and 
the  range  ready  to  receive  the  cattle. 

I  returned  to  Texas  to  find  everything  in  a  pros 
perous  condition.  The  Texas  and  Pacific  railway 
had  built  their  line  westward  during  the  past  sum 
mer,  crossing  the  Colorado  River  sixty  miles  south 
of  headquarters  on  the  Double  Mountain  ranch 
and  paralleling  my  Clear  Fork  range  about  half 
that  distance  below.  Previous  to  my  return,  the 
foreman  on  my  Western  ranch  shipped  out  four 
trains  of  sixteen  hundred  bulls  on  consignment  to 
our  regular  customer  in  Illinois,  it  being  the  largest 


CHEYENNE  AND  ARAPAHOE  COMPANY  317 

single  shipment  made  from  Colorado  City  since  the 
railway  reached  that  point.  Thrifty  little  towns 
were  springing  up  along  the  railroad,  land  was  in 
demand  as  a  result  of  the  boom  in  cattle,  and  an 
air  of  prosperity  pervaded  both  city  and  hamlet 
and  was  reflected  in  a  general  activity  throughout 
the  State.  The  improved  herd  was  the  pride  of  the 
Double  Mountain  ranch,  now  increased  by  over 
seven  hundred  half-blood  heifers,  while  the  young 
males  were  annually  claimed  for  the  improvement 
of  the  main  ranch  stock.  For  fear  of  in-and-in 
breeding,  three  years  was  the  limit  of  use  of  any 
bulls  among  the  improved  cattle,  the  first  im 
portation  going  to  the  main  stock,  and  a  second 
consignment  supplanting  them  at  the  head  of  the 
herd. 

In  the  permanent  organization  of  The  Cheyenne 
and  Arapahoe  Cattle  Company,  the  position  of 
general  manager  fell  to  me.  It  was  my  wish  that 
this  place  should  have  gone  to  Edwards,  as  he  was 
well  qualified  to  fill  it,  while  I  was  busy  looking  after 
the  firm  and  individual  interests.  Major  Hunter 
likewise  favored  our  segundo,  but  the  Eastern 
stockholders  were  insistent  that  the  management 
of  the  new  company  should  rest  in  the  hands  of  a 
successful  cowman.  The  salary  contingent  with 
the  position  was  no  inducement  to  me,  but,  with 
the  pressure  brought  to  bear  and  in  the  interests  of 
harmony,  I  was  finally  prevailed  on  to  accept  the 


318  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

management.  The  proposition  was  a  simple  one, 

the  maturing  and  marketing  of  beeves;  we  had 
made  a  success  of  the  firm's  beef  ranch  in  the 
Cherokee  Outlet,  and  as  far  as  human  foresight 
went,  all  things  augured  for  a  profitable  future. 

There  was  no  intention  on  the  part  of  the  old 
firm  to  retire  from  the  enviable  position  that  we 
occupied  as  trail  drovers.  Thus  enlarging  the  scope 
of  our  operations  as  cowmen  simply  meant  that 
greater  responsibility  would  rest  on  the  shoulders 
of  the  active  partners  and  our  trusted  men.  Accept 
ing  the  management  of  the  new  company  meant,  to 
a  certain  extent,  a  severance  of  my  personal  con 
nection  with  the  firm,  yet  my  every  interest  was 
maintained  in  the  trail  and  beef  ranch.  One  of 
my  first  acts  as  manager  of  the  new  company  was 
to  serve  a  notice  through  our  secretary-treasurer 
calling  for  the  capital  stock  to  be  paid  in  on  or 
before  February  1,  1882.  It  was  my  intention  to 
lay  the  foundation  of  the  new  company  on  a  solid 
basis,  and  with  ample  capital  at  my  command  I 
gave  the  practical  experiences  of  my  life  to  the 
venture.  During  the  winter  I  bought  five  hundred 
head  of  choice  saddle  horses,  all  bred  in  north 
Texas  and  the  Pan-Handle,  every  one  of  which  I 
passed  on  personally  before  accepting. 

Thus  outfitted,  I  awaited  the  annual  cattle  con 
vention.  Major  Hunter  and  our  segundo  were 
present,  and  while  we  worked  in  harmony,  I  was 


CHEYENNE  AND  ARAPAHOE  COMPANY  319 

as  wide  awake  for  a  bargain  in  the  interests  of  the 
new  company  as  they  were  in  that  of  the  old  firm. 
I  let  contracts  for  five  herds  of  fifteen  thousand 
Pan-Handle  three-year-old  steers  for  delivery  on 
the  new  range  in  the  Indian  Territory,  and  bought 
nine  thousand  twos  to  be  driven  on  company  ac 
count.  There  was  the  usual  whoop  and  hurrah  at 
the  convention,  and  when  it  closed  I  lacked  only 
six  thousand  head  of  my  complement  for  the  new 
ranch.  I  was  confining  myself  strictly  to  north 
Texas  and  Pan-Handle  cattle,  for  through  Mon 
tana  cowmen  I  learned  that  there  was  an  advantage, 
at  maturity,  in  the  northern-bred  animal.  Major 
Hunter  and  our  segundo  bought  and  contracted  in 
a  dozen  counties  from  the  Rio  Grande  to  Red  River 
during  the  convention,  and  at  the  close  we  scattered 
to  the  four  winds  in  the  interests  of  our  respective 
work.  In  order  to  give  my  time  and  attention  to 
the  new  organization,  I  assigned  my  individual 
cattle  to  the  care  of  the  firm,  of  which  I  was  send 
ing  out  ten  thousand  three-year-old  steers  and  two 
herds  of  aging  and  dry  cows.  They  would  take 
their  chances  in  the  open  market,  though  I  would 
have  dearly  loved  to  take  over  the  young  steers  for 
the  new  company  rather  than  have  bought  their 
equivalent  in  numbers.  I  had  a  dislike  to  parting 
with  an  animal  of  my  own  breeding,  and  to  have 
brought  these  to  a  ripe  maturity  under  my  own 
eye  would  have  been  a  pleasure  and  a  satisfaction. 


320  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

But  such  an  action  might  have  caused  distrust  of 
my  management,  and  an  honest  name  is  a  valuable 
asset  in  a  cowman's  capital. 

My  ranch  foremen  made  up  the  herds  and 
started  my  individual  cattle  on  the  trail.  I  had  pre 
viously  bought  the  two  remaining  herds  in  Archer 
and  Clay  counties,  and  in  the  five  that  were  con 
tracted  for  and  would  be  driven  at  company  risk 
and  account,  every  animal  passed  and  was  received 
under  my  personal  inspection.  Three  of  the  latter 
were  routed  by  way  of  the  Cbisholin  trail,  and  two 
by  the  Western,  while  the  cattle  under  contract  for 
delivery  at  the  company  ranch  went  by  any  route 
that  their  will  and  pleasure  saw  fit.  I  saw  very 
little  of  my  old  associates  during  the  spring  months, 
for  no  sooner  had  I  started  the  herds  than  I  has 
tened  to  overtake  the  lead  one  so  as  to  arrive  with 
the  cattle  at  their  new  range.  I  had  kept  in  touch 
with  the  building  of  fences,  and  on  our  arrival,  near 
the  middle  of  May,  the  western  and  southern 
strings  were  completed.  It  was  not  my  intention 
to  inclose  the  entire  range,  only  so  far  as  to  catch 
any  possible  drift  of  cattle  to  the  south  or  west.  A 
twenty-mile  spur  of  fence  on  the  east,  with  half 
that  line  and  all  the  north  one  open,  would  be  suffi 
cient  until  further  encroachments  were  made  on 
our  range.  We  would  have  to  ride  the  fences  daily, 
anyhow,  and  where  there  was  no  danger  of  drift 
ing,  an  open  line  was  as  good  as  a  fence. 


CHEYENNE  AND  ARAPAHOE  COMPANY  321 

As  fast  as  the  cattle  arrived  they  were  placed 
under  loose  herd  for  the  first  two  weeks.  Early  in 
June  the  last  of  the  contracted  herds  arrived  and 
were  scattered  over  the  range,  the  outfits  returning 
to  Texas.  I  reduced  my  help  gradually,  as  the 
cattle  quieted  down  and  became  located,  until  by 
the  middle  of  summer  we  were  running  the  ranch 
with  thirty  men,  which  were  later  reduced  to 
twenty  for  the  winter.  Line  camps  were  estab 
lished  on  the  north  and  east,  comfortable  quarters 
were  built  for  fence-riders  and  their  horses,  and 
aside  from  headquarters  camp,  half  a  dozen  out 
posts  were  maintained.  Hay  contracts  were  let  for 
sufficient  forage  to  winter  forty  horses,  the  cattle 
located  nicely  within  a  month,  and  time  rolled  by 
without  a  cloud  on  the  horizon  of  the  new  cattle 
company.  I  paid  a  flying  visit  to  Dodge  and 
Ogalalla,  but,  finding  the  season  drawing  to  a  close 
and  the  firm's  cattle  all  sold,  I  contentedly  re 
turned  to  my  accepted  task.  I  had  been  buried  for 
several  months  in  the  heart  of  the  Indian  Terri 
tory,  and  to  get  out  where  one  could  read  the  daily 
papers  was  a  treat.  During  my  banishment,  Sen 
ator  Teller  had  been  confirmed  as  Secretary  of  the 
Interior,  an  appointment  that  augured  well  for  the 
future  of  the  Cheyenne  and  Arapahoe  Cattle  Com 
pany.  Advices  from  Washington  were  encouraging, 
and  while  the  new  secretary  lacked  authority  to 
sanction  our  lease,  his  tacit  approval  was  assured. 


322  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

The  firm  of  Hunter,  Anthony  &  Co.  made  a 
barrel  of  money  in  trailing  cattle  and  from  their 
beef  ranch  during  the  summer  of  1882.  I  actually 
felt  grieved  over  my  portion  of  the  season's  work, 
for  while  I  had  established  a  promising  ranch,  I 
had  little  to  show,  the  improvement  account  being 
heavy,  owing  to  our  isolation.  It  was  doubtful  if 
we  could  have  sold  the  ranch  and  cattle  at  a  pro 
fit,  yet  I  was  complimented  on  my  management, 
and  given  to  understand  that  the  stockholders 
were  anxious  to  double  the  capitalization  should  I 
consent.  Range  was  becoming  valuable,  and  at  a 
meeting  of  the  directors  that  fall  a  resolution  was 
passed,  authorizing  me  to  secure  a  lease  adjoining 
our  present  one.  Accordingly,  when  paying  the 
second  installment  of  rent  money,  I  took  the  In 
dian  agent  of  the  two  tribes  with  me.  The  leading 
chiefs  were  pleased  with  my  punctuality  in  meet 
ing  the  rental,  and  a  proposition  to  double  their  in 
come  of  "  grass  "  money  met  with  hearty  grunts  of 
approval.  I  made  the  council  a  little  speech,  —  my 
maiden  endeavor,  —  and  when  it  was  interpreted 
to  the  squatting  circle  I  had  won  the  confidence  of 
these  simple  aborigines.  A  duplicate  of  our  former 
lease  in  acreage  and  terms  was  drawn  up  and 
signed;  and  during  the  existence  of  our  com 
pany  the  best  teepee  in  the  winter  or  summer 
encampments,  of  either  the  Cheyennes  or  Arapa- 
hoes,  was  none  too  good  for  Reed  Anthony  when 


CHEYENNE  AND  ARAPAHOE  COMPANY  323 

he  came  with  the  rent  money  or  on  other  busi 
ness. 

Our  capital  stock  was  increased  to  two  million 
dollars,  in  the  latter  half  of  which,  one  hundred 
thousand  was  asked  for  and  allotted  to  me.  I 
stayed  on  the  range  until  the  first  of  December, 
freighting  in  a  thousand  bushels  of  corn  for  the 
horses  and  otherwise  seeing  that  the  camps  were 
fully  provisioned  before  returning  to  my  home  in 
Texas.  The  winter  proved  dry  and  cold,  the  cattle 
coming  through  in  fine  condition,  not  one  per  cent 
of  loss  being  sustained,  which  is  a  good  record  for 
through  stock.  Spring  came  and  found  me  on  the 
trail,  with  five  herds  on  company  account  and  eight 
herds  under  contract, —  a  total  of  forty  thousand 
cattle  intended  for  the  enlarged  range.  All  these 
had  been  bought  north  of  the  quarantine  line  in 
Texas,  and  were  turned  loose  with  the  wintered  ones, 
fever  having  been  unknown  among  our  holdings  of 
the  year  before.  In  the  mean  time  the  eastern  spur 
of  fence  had  been  taken  down  and  the  southern 
line  extended  forty  miles  eastward  and  north  the 
same  distance.  The  northern  line  of  our  range  was 
left  open,  the  fences  being  merely  intended  to 
catch  any  possible  drift  from  summer  storms  or 
wintry  blizzards.  Yet  in  spite  of  this  precaution, 
two  round-up  outfits  were  kept  in  the  field  through 
the  early  summer,  one  crossing  into  the  Chickasaw 
Nation  and  the  other  going  as  far  south  as  Ked 


324  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

Eiver,  gathering  any  possible  strays  from  the  new 
range. 

I  was  giving  my  best  services  to  the  new  com 
pany.  Save  for  the  fact  that  I  had  capable  foremen 
on  my  individual  ranches  in  Texas,  my  absence  was 
felt  in  directing  the  interests  of  the  firm  and  per 
sonally.  Major  Hunter  had  promoted  an  old  fore 
man  to  a  trusted  man,  and  the  firm  kept  up  the 
volume  of  business  on  the  trail  and  ranch,  though 
I  was  summoned  once  to  Dodge  and  twice  to  Oga- 
lalla  during  the  summer  of  1883.  Issues  had  arisen 
making  my  presence  necessary,  but  after  the  last 
trail  herd  was  sold  I  returned  to  my  post.  The 
boom  was  still  on  in  cattle  at  the  trail  markets,  and 
Texas  was  straining  every  energy  to  supply  the  de 
mand,  yet  the  cry  swept  down  from  the  North  for 
more  cattle.  I  was  branding  twenty  thousand  calves 
a  year  on  my  two  ranches,  holding  the  increase 
down  to  that  number  by  sending  she  stuff  up  the 
country  on  sale,  and  from  half  a  dozen  sources  of 
income  I  was  coining  money  beyond  human  need 
or  necessity.  I  was  then  in  the  physical  prime  of 
my  life  and  was  master  of  a  profitable  business, 
while  vistas  of  a  brilliant  future  opened  before  me 
on  every  hand. 

When  the  round-up  outfits  came  in  for  the  sum 
mer,  the  beef  shipping  began.  In  the  first  two  con 
tingents  of  cattle  purchased  in  securing  the  good 
will  of  the  original  range,  we  now  had  five  thousand 


CHEYENNE  AND  ARAPAHOE  COMPANY  325 

double  wintered  beeves.  It  was  my  intention  to 
ship  out  the  best  of  the  single  wintered  ones,  and 
five  separate  outfits  were  ordered  into  the  saddle 
for  that  purpose.  With  the  exception  of  line  and 
fence  riders,  —  for  two  hundred  and  forty  miles 
were  ridden  daily,  rain  or  shine,  summer  or  win 
ter,  —  every  man  on  the  ranch  took  up  his  abode 
with  the  wagons.  Caldwell  and  Hunnewell,  on  the 
Kansas  state  line  were  the  nearest  shipping  points, 
requiring  fifteen  days'  travel  with  beeves,  and  if 
there  was  no  delay  in  cars,  an  outfit  could  easily 
gather  the  cattle  and  make  a  round  trip  in  less 
than  a  month.  Three  or  four  trainloads,  number 
ing  from  one  thousand  and  fifty  to  fourteen  hundred 
head,  were  cut  out  at  a  time  and  handled  by  a  single 
outfit.  I  covered  the  country  between  the  ranch 
and  shipping  points,  riding  night  and  day  ahead 
in  ordering  cars,  and  dropping  back  to  the  ranch 
to  superintend  the  cutting  out  of  the  next  consign 
ment  of  cattle.  Each  outfit  made  three  trips,  ship 
ping  out  fifteen  thousand  beeves  that  fall,  leaving 
sixty  thousand  cattle  to  winter  on  the  range. 

Several  times  that  fall,  when  shipping  beeves  from 
Caldwell,  we  met  up  with  the  firm's  outfits  from 
the  Eagle  Chief  in  the  Cherokee  Outlet.  Naturally 
the  different  shipping  crews  looked  over  each  other's 
cattle,  and  an  intense  rivalry  sprang  up  between 
the  different  foremen  and  men.  The  cattle  of  the 
new  company  outshone  those  of  the  old  firm,  and 


326  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

were  outselling  them  in  the  markets,  while  the  for 
mer's  remudas  were  in  a  class  by  themselves,  all  of 
which  was  salt  to  open  wounds  and  magnified  the 
jealousy  between  our  own  outfits.  The  rivalry 
amused  me,  and  until  petty  personalities  were  freely 
indulged  in,  I  encouraged  and  widened  the  breach 
between  the  rival  crews.  The  outfits  under  my  di 
rection  had  accumulated  a  large  supply  of  saddle 
and  sleeping  blankets  procured  from  the  Indians, 
gaudy  in  color,  manufactured  in  sizes  for  papoose, 
squaw,  and  buck.  These  goods  were  of  the  finest 
quality,  but  during  the  annual  festivals  of  the  tribe 
Lo's  hunger  for  gambling  induced  him  to  part,  for 
a  mere  song,  with  the  blanket  that  the  paternal 
government  intended  should  shelter  him  during  the 
storms  of  winter.  Every  man  in  my  outfits  owned 
from  six  to  ten  blankets,  and  the  Eagle  Chief  lads 
rechristened  the  others,  including  myself,  with  the 
most  odious  of  Indian  names.  In  return,  we  refused 
to  visit  or  eat  at  their  wagons,  claiming  that  they 
lived  slovenly  and  were  lousy.  The  latter  had  an 
educated  Scotchman  with  them,  McDougle  by  name, 
the  ranch  bookkeeper,  who  always  went  into  town 
in  advance  to  order  cars.  McDougle  had  a  weak 
ness  for  the  cup,  and  on  one  occasion  he  fell  into 
the  hands  of  my  men,  who  humored  his  failing, 
marching  him  through  the  streets,  saloons,  and 
hotels  shouting  at  the  top  of  his  voice,  "  Hunter, 
Anthony  &  Company  are  going  to  ship !  "  The  ex- 


CHEYENNE  AND  ARAPAHOE  COMPANY  327 

pression  became  a  byword  among  the  citizens  of 
the  town,  and  every  reappearance  of  McDougle 
was  accepted  as  a  herald  that  our  outfits  from  the 
Eagle  Chief  were  coming  in  with  cattle. 

A  special  meeting  of  the  stockholders  was  called 
at  Washington  that  fall,  which  all  the  Western 
members  attended.  Reports  were  submitted  by  the 
secretary-treasurer  and  myself,  the  executive  com 
mittee  made  several  suggestions,  the  proposition  to 
pay  a  dividend  was  overwhelmingly  voted  down, 
and  a  further  increase  of  the  capital  stock  was 
urged  by  the  Eastern  contingent.  I  sounded  a 
note  of  warning,  called  attention  to  the  single  cloud 
on  the  horizon,  which  was  the  enmity  that  we  had 
engendered  in  a  clique  of  army  followers  in  and 
around  Fort  Reno.  These  men  had  in  the  past,  were 
even  then,  collecting  toll  from  every  other  holder  of 
cattle  on  the  Cheyenne  and  Arapahoe  reservation. 
That  this  coterie  of  usurpers  hated  the  new  com 
pany  and  me  personally  was  a  well-known  fact,  while 
its  influence  was  proving  much  stronger  than  at 
first  anticipated,  and  I  cheerfully  admitted  the  same 
to  the  stockholders  assembled.  The  Eastern  mind, 
living  under  established  conditions,  could  hardly 
realize  the  chaotic  state  of  affairs  in  the  West,  with 
its  vicious  morals,  and  any  attempt  to  levy  tribute 
in  the  form  of  blackmail  was  repudiated  by  the 
stockholders  in  assembly.  Major  Hunter  understood 
my  position  and  delicately  suggested  coming  to 


328     \      REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

terms  with  the  company's  avowed  enemies  as  the 
only  feasible  solution  of  the  impending  trouble.  To 
further  enlarge  our  holdings  of  cattle  and  leased 
range,  he  urged,  would  be  throwing  down  the 
gauntlet  in  defiance  of  the  clique  of  army  attaches. 
Evidently  no  one  took  us  seriously,  and  instead, 
ringing  resolutions  passed,  enlarging  the  capital 
stock  by  another  million,  with  instructions  to  in 
crease  our  leases  accordingly. 

The  Western  contingent  returned  home  with  some 
misgivings  as  to  the  future.  Nothing  was  to  be 
feared  from  the  tribes  from  whom  we  were  leasing, 
nor  the  Comanche  and  his  allies  on  the  southwest, 
though  there  were  renegades  in  both ;  but  the  dan 
ger  lay  in  the  flotsam  of  the  superior  race  which 
infested  the  frontier.  I  felt  no  concern  for  my  per 
sonal  welfare,  riding  in  and  out  from  Fort  Eeno  at 
my  will  and  pleasure,  though  I  well  knew  that  my 
presence  on  the  reservation  was  a  thorn  in  the  flesh 
of  my  enemies.  There  was  little  to  fear,  however, 
as  the  latter  class  of  men  never  met  an  adversary 
in  the  open,  but  by  secret  methods  sought  to  ac 
complish  their  objects.  The  breach  between  the 
Indian  agent  and  these  parasites  of  the  army  was 
constantly  widening,  and  an  effort  had  been  made 
to  have  the  former  removed,  but  our  friends  at  the 
national  capital  took  a  hand,  and  the  movement 
was  thwarted.  Fuel  was  being  constantly  added  to 
the  fire,  and  on  our  taking  a  third  lease  on  a  million 


CHEYENNE  AND  ARAPAHOE  COMPANY  329 

acres,  the  smoke  gave  way  to  flames.  Our  usual 
pacific  measures  were  pursued,  buying  out  any  cat 
tle  in  conflict,  but  fencing  our  entire  range.  The 
last  addition  to  our  pasture  embraced  a  strip  of 
country  twenty  miles  wide,  lying  north  of  and  par 
allel  to  the  two  former  leases,  and  gave  us  a  range 
on  which  no  animal  need  ever  feel  the  restriction 
of  a  fence.  Ten  to  fifteen  acres  were  sufficient  to 
graze  a  steer  the  year  round,  but  owing  to  the  fact 
that  we  depended  entirely  on  running  water,  much 
of  the  range  would  be  valueless  during  the  dry 
summer  months.  I  readily  understood  the  advan 
tages  of  a  half-stocked  range,  and  expected  in  the 
future  to  allow  twenty-five  acres  in  the  summer 
and  thirty  in  the  winter  to  the  pasture's  holdings. 
Everything  being  snug  for  the  winter,  orders  were 
left  to  ride  certain  fences  twice  a  day, — lines 
where  we  feared  fence-cutting,  — -  and  I  took  my  de 
parture  for  home. 


CHAPTER  XX 
HOLDING  THE  FORT 

As  in  many  other  lines  of  business,  there  were  ebb 
and  flood  tides  in  cattle.  The  opening  of  the  trail 
through  to  the  extreme  Northwest  gave  the  range 
live  stock  industry  its  greatest  impetus.  There  have 
always  been  seasons  of  depression  and  advances, 
the  cycles  covering  periods  of  ten  to  a  dozen  years, 
the  duration  of  the  ebb  and  stationary  tides  being 
double  that  of  the  flood.  Outside  influences  have 
had  their  bearing,  and  the  wresting  of  an  empire 
from  its  savage  possessors  in  the  West,  and  its 
immediate  occupancy  by  the  dominant  race  in 
ranching,  stimulated  cattle  prices  far  beyond  what 
was  justified  by  the  laws  of  supply  and  demand. 
The  boom  in  live  stock  in  the  Southwest  which 
began  in  the  early  '80's  stands  alone  in  the  market 
variations  of  the  last  half-century.  And  as  if  to 
rebuke  the  folly  of  man  and  remind  him  that  he  is 
but  grass,  Nature  frowned  with  two  successive 
severe  winters,  humbling  the  kings  and  princes  of 
the  range. 

Up  to  and  including  the  winter  of  1883-84  the 
loss  among  range  cattle  was  trifling.    The  country 


HOLDING   THE  FORT  331 

was  new  and  open,  and  when  the  stock  could  drift 
freely  in  advance  of  storms,  their  instincts  carried 
them  to  the  sheltering  coulees,  cut  banks,  and 
broken  country  until  the  blizzard  had  passed.  Since 
our  firm  began  maturing  beeves  ten  years  before, 
the  losses  attributable  to  winter  were  never  noticed, 
nor  did  they  in  the  least  affect  our  profits.  On  my 
ranches  in  Texas  the  primitive  law  of  survival  of 
the  fittest  prevailed,  the  winter-kill  falling  sorest 
among  the  weak  and  aging  cows.  My  personal  loss 
was  always  heavier  than  that  of  the  firm,  owing  to 
my  holdings  being  mixed  stock,  and  due  to  the 
fact  that  an  animal  in  the  South  never  took  on 
tallow  enough  to  assist  materially  in  resisting  a 
winter.  The  cattle  of  the  North  always  had  the 
flesh  to  withstand  the  rigors  of  the  wintry  season, 
dry,  cold,  zero  weather  being  preferable  to  rain, 
sleet,  and  the  northers  that  swept  across  the  plains 
of  Texas.  The  range  of  the  new  company  was  inter 
mediate  between  the  extremes  of  north  and  south, 
and  as  we  handled  all  steer  cattle,  no  one  enter 
tained  any  fear  from  the  climate. 

I  passed  a  comparatively  idle  winter  at  my  home 
on  the  Clear  Fork.  Weekly  reports  reached  me 
from  the  new  ranch,  several  of  which  caused  unea 
siness,  as  our  fences  were  several  times  cut  on  the 
southwest,  and  a  prairie  fire,  the  work  of  an  incendi 
ary,  broke  out  at  midnight  on  our  range.  Happily 
the  wind  fell,  and  by  daybreak  the  smoke  arose  in 


332  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

columns,  summoning  every  man  on  the  ranch,  and 
the  fire  was  soon  brought  under  control.  As  a  pre 
caution  to  such  a  possibility  we  had  burned  fire 
guards  entirely  around  the  range  by  plowing  fur 
rows  one  hundred  feet  apart  and  burning  out  the 
middle.  Taking  advantage  of  creeks  and  water 
courses,  natural  boundaries  that  a  prairie  fire  could 
hardly  jump,  we  had  cut  and  quartered  the  pasture 
with  fire-guards  in  such  a  manner  that,  unless  there 
was  a  concerted  action  on  the  part  of  any  hirelings 
of  our  enemies,  it  would  have  been  impossible  to 
have  burned  more  than  a  small  portion  of  the  range 
at  any  one  time.  But  these  malicious  attempts  at 
our  injury  made  the  outfit  doubly  vigilant,  and 
cutting  fences  and  burning  range  would  have 
proven  unhealthful  occupations  had  the  perpetra 
tors,  red  or  white,  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  fore 
man  and  his  men.  I  naturally  looked  on  the  bright 
side  of  the  future,  and  in  the  hope  that,  once  the 
entire  range  was  fenced,  we  could  keep  trespassers 
out,  I  made  preparations  for  the  spring  drive. 

With  the  first  appearance  of  grass,  all  the  sur 
plus  horses  were  ordered  down  to  Texas  from  the 
company  ranch.  There  was  a  noticeable  lull  at 
the  cattle  convention  that  spring,  and  an  absence  of 
buyers  from  the  Northwest  was  apparent,  resulting 
in  little  or  no  trouble  in  contracting  for  delivery 
on  the  ranch,  and  in  buying  on  company  account 
at  the  prevailing  prices  of  the  spring  before.  Cattle 


HOLDING   THE   FORT  333 

were  high  enough  as  it  was ;  in  fact  the  market 
was  top-heavy  and  wobbling  on  its  feet,  though  the 
brightest  of  us  cowmen  naturally  supposed  that 
current  values  would  always  remain  up  in  the  pic 
tures.    As  manager  of  the  new  company,  I  bought 
and  contracted  for  fifty  thousand  steers,  ten  herds 
of  which  were  to  be  driven  on  company  account. 
All  the  cattle  came  from  the  Pan-Handle  and  north 
Texas,  above  the  quarantine  line,  the  latter  precau 
tion  being  necessary  in  order  to  avoid  any  possi 
bility  of   fever,  in  mixing  through  and  northern 
wintered  stock.    With  the  opening  of  spring  two 
of  my  old  foremen  were  promoted  to  assist  in  the 
receiving,  as  my  contracts  called  for  everything  to 
be  passed  upon  on  the  home  range  before  starting 
the  herds.    Some  little  friction  had  occurred  the 
summer  before  with  the  deliveries  at  the  company 
ranch   in   an  effort  to   turn  in   short-aged  cattle. 
All  contracts  this  year  and  the  year  before  called 
for  threes,  and  frequently  several  hundred  long 
twos  were  found  in  a  single  herd,  and  I  refused  to 
accept  them  unless  at  the  customary  difference  in 
price.    More  or  less  contention  arose,  and,  for  the 
present    spring,   I    proposed  to   curb   all    friction 
at  home,  allotting  to  my  assistants  the  receiving  of 
the  herds  for  company  risk,  and  personally  passing 
on  seven  under  contract. 

The  original  firm  was  still  in  the  field,  operating 
exclusively  in  central  Texas  and  Pan-Handle  cattle. 


334  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

Both  my  ranches  sent  out  their  usual  contribution 
of  steers  and  cows,  consigned  to  the  care  of  the 
firm,  which  was  now  giving  more  attention  to 
quality  than  quantity.  The  absence  of  the  men 
from  the  Northwest  at  the  cattle  convention  that 
spring  was  taken  as  an  omen  that  the  upper 
country  would  soon  be  satiated,  a  hint  that  re 
trenchment  was  in  order,  and  a  better  class  of 
stock  was  to  receive  the  firm's  attention  in  its  fu 
ture  operations.  My  personal  contingent  of  steers 
would  have  passed  muster  in  any  country,  and  as 
to  my  consignment  of  cows,  they  were  pure  velvet, 
and  could  defy  competition  in  the  upper  range 
markets.  Everything  moved  out  with  the  grass  as 
usual,  and  when  the  last  of  the  company  herds 
had  crossed  Red  River,  I  rode  through  to  the  new 
ranch.  The  north  and  east  line  of  fence  was  near- 
ing  completion,  the  western  string  was  joined  to 
the  original  boundary,  and,  with  the  range  fully 
inclosed,  my  ranch  foreman,  the  men,  and  myself 
looked  forward  to  a  prosperous  future. 

The  herds  arrived  and  were  located,  the  usual 
round-up  outfits  were  sent  out  wherever  there  was 
the  possibility  of  a  stray,  and  we  settled  down  in 
pastoral  security.  The  ranch  outfit  had  held  their 
own  during  the  winter  just  passed,  had  trailed 
down  stolen  cattle,  and  knew  to  a  certainty  who 
the  thieves  were  and  where  they  came  from.  Ex 
cept  what  had  been  slaughtered,  all  the  stock  was 


HOLDING  THE   FORT  335 

recovered,  and  due  notice  given  to  offenders  that 
Judge  Lynch  would  preside  should  any  one  sus 
pected  of  fence-cutting,  starting  incendiary  fires,  or 
stealing  cattle  be  caught  within  the  boundaries  of 
our  leases.  Fortunately  the  other  cowmen  were 
tiring  of  paying  tribute  to  the  usurpers,  and  our 
determined  stand  heartened  holders  of  cattle  on 
the  reservation,  many  of  whom  were  now  seeking 
leases  direct  from  the  tribes.  I  made  it  my  busi 
ness  personally  to  see  every  other  owner  of  live 
stock  occupying  the  country,  and  urge  upon  them 
the  securing  of  leases  and  making  an  organized 
fight  for  our  safety.  Lessees  in  the  Cherokee  Strip 
had  fenced  as  a  matter  of  convenience  and  pro 
tection,  and  I  urged  the  same  course  on  the  Chey 
enne  and  Arapahoe  reservation,  offering  the  free 
use  of  our  line  fences  to  any  one  who  wished  to 
adjoin  our  pastures.  In  the  course  of  a  month, 
nearly  every  acre  of  the  surrounding  country  was 
taken,  only  one  or  two  squaw-men  holding  out,  and 
these  claiming  their  ranges  under  Indian  rights. 
The  movement  was  made  so  aggressive  that  the 
usurpers  were  driven  into  obscurity,  never  show 
ing  their  hand  again  until  after  the  presidential 
election  that  fall. 

During  the  summer  a  deputation  of  Cheyennes 
and  Arapahoes  visited  me  at  ranch  headquarters. 
On  the  last  lease  taken,  and  now  inclosed  in  our 
pasture,  there  were  a  number  of  wild  plum  groves, 


336  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

covering  thousands  of  acres,  and  the  Indians  wanted 
permission  to  gather  the  ripening  fruit.  Taking  ad 
vantage  of  the  opportunity,  in  granting  the  request 
I  made  it  a  point  to  fortify  the  friendly  relations, 
not  only  with  ourselves,  but  with  all  other  cattle 
men  on  the  reservation.  Ten  days'  permission  was 
given  to  gather  the  wild  plums,  camps  were  allotted 
to  the  Indians,  and  when  the  fruit  was  all  gathered, 
I  barbecued  five  stray  beeves  in  parting  with  my 
guests.  The  Indian  agent  and  every  cowman  on 
the  reservation  were  invited,  and  at  the  conclusion 
of  the  festival  the  Quaker  agent  made  the  as 
sembled  chiefs  a  fatherly  talk.  Torpid  from  feast 
ing,  the  bucks  grunted  approval  of  the  new  order 
of  things,  and  an  Arapahoe  chief,  responding  in 
behalf  of  his  tribe,  said  that  the  rent  from  the 
grass  now  fed  his  people  better  than  under  the  old 
buffalo  days.  Pledging  anew  the  fraternal  bond, 
and  appointing  the  gathering  of  the  plums  as  an 
annual  festival  thereafter,  the  tribes  took  up  their 
march  in  returning  to  their  encampment. 

I  was  called  to  Dodge  but  once  during  the 
summer  of  1884.  My  steers  had  gone  to  Ogalalla 
and  were  sold,  the  cows  remaining  at  the  lower 
market,  all  of  which  had  changed  owners  with  the 
exception  of  one  thousand  head.  The  demand  had 
fallen  off,  and  a  dull  close  of  the  season  was  pre 
dicted,  but  I  shaded  prices  and  closed  up  my  per 
sonal  holdings  before  returning.  Several  of  the 


HOLDING   THE   FORT  337 

firm's  steer  herds  were  unsold  at  Dodge,  but  on 
the  approach  of  the  shipping  season  I  returned  to 
my  task,  and  we  began  to  move  out  our  beeves 
with  seven  outfits  in  the  saddle.  Four  round  trips 
were  made  to  the  crew,  shipping  out  twenty  thou 
sand  double  and  half  that  number  of  single 
wintered  cattle.  The  grass  had  been  fine  that 
summer,  and  the  beeves  came  up  in  prime  condi 
tion,  always  topping  the  market  as  range  cattle  at 
the  markets  to  which  they  were  consigned.  That 
branch  of  the  work  over,  every  energy  was  centred 
in  making  the  ranch  snug  for  the  winter.  Extra 
fire-guards  were  plowed,  and  the  middles  burned 
out,  cutting  the  range  into  a  dozen  parcels,  and 
thus,  as  far  as  possible,  the  winter  forage  was  se 
cured  for  our  holdings  of  eighty  thousand  cattle. 
Hay  and  grain  contracts  had  been  previously  let, 
the  latter  to  be  freighted  in  from  southern  Kansas, 
when  the  news  reached  us  that  the  recent  election 
had  resulted  in  a  political  change  of  administra 
tion.  What  effect  this  would  have  on  our  holding 
cattle  on  Indian  lands  was  pure  conjecture,  though 
our  enemies  came  out  of  hiding,  gloating  over  the 
change,  and  swearing  vengeance  on  the  cowmen 
on  the  Cheyenne  and  Arapahoe  reservation. 

The  turn  of  the  tide  in  cattle  prices  was  notice 
able  at  all  the  range  markets  that  fall.  A  number 
of  herds  were  unsold  at  Dodge,  among  them  being 
one  of  ours,  but  we  turned  it  southeast  early  in 


338  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

September  and  wintered  it  on  our  range  in  the 
Outlet.  The  largest  drive  in  the  history  of  the 
trail  had  taken  place  that  summer,  and  the  failure 
of  the  West  and  Northwest  to  absorb  the  entire 
offerings  of  the  drovers  made  the  old  firm  appre 
hensive  of  the  future.  There  was  a  noticeable 
shrinkage  in  our  profits  from  trail  operations,  but 
with  the  supposition  that  it  was  merely  an  off  year, 
the  matter  was  passed  for  the  present.  It  was  the 
opinion  of  the  directors  of  the  new  company  that 
no  dividends  should  be  declared  until  our  range 
was  stocked  to  its  full  capacity,  or  until  there  was 
a  comfortable  surplus.  This  suited  me,  and,  return 
ing  home,  I  expected  to  spend  the  winter  with  my 
family,  now  increased  to  four  girls  and  six  boys. 

But  a  cowman  can  promise  himself  little  rest  or 
pleasure.  After  a  delightful  week  spent  on  my 
western  ranch,  I  returned  to  the  Clear  Fork,  and 
during  the  latter  part  of  November  a  terrible 
norther  swept  down  and  caught  me  in  a  hunting- 
camp  twenty-five  miles  from  home.  My  two  oldest 
boys  were  along,  a  negro  cook,  and  a  few  hands, 
and  in  spite  of  our  cosy  camp,  we  all  nearly  froze 
to  death.  Nothing  but  a  roaring  fire  saved  us  dur 
ing  the  first  night  of  its  duration,  and  the  next 
morning  we  saddled  our  horses  and  struck  out  for 
home,  riding  in  the  face  of  a  sleet  that  froze  our 
clothing  like  armor.  Norther  followed  norther,  and 
I  was  getting  uneasy  about  the  company  ranch, 


HOLDING  THE   FORT  339 

when  I  received  a  letter  from  Major  Hunter, 
stating  that  he  was  starting  for  our  range  in  the 
Outlet  and  predicting  a  heavy  loss  of  cattle.  Head 
quarters  in  the  Indian  Territory  were  fully  two 
hundred  and  fifty  miles  due  north,  and  within  an 
hour  after  receiving  the  letter,  I  started  overland 
on  horseback,  using  two  of  my  best  saddlers  for 
the  trip.  To  have  gone  by  rail  and  stage  would 
have  taken  four  days,  and  if  fair  weather  favored 
me  I  could  nearly  divide  that  time  by  half.  Chang 
ing  horses  frequently,  one  day  out  I  had  left  Red 
River  in  my  rear,  but  before  me  lay  an  uninhabited 
country,  unless  I  veered  from  my  course  and  went 
through  the  Chickasaw  Nation.  For  the  sake  of 
securing  grain  for  the  horses,  this  tack  was  made, 
following  the  old  Chisholm  trail  for  nearly  one 
hundred  miles.  The  country  was  in  the  grip  of 
winter,  sleet  and  snow  covering  the  ground,  with 
succor  for  man  and  horse  far  apart.  Mumford 
Johnson's  ranch  on  the  Washita  River  was  reached 
late  the  second  night,  and  by  daybreak  the  next 
morning  I  was  on  the  trail,  making  Quartermaster 
Creek  by  one  o'clock  that  day.  Fortunately  no 
storms  were  encountered  en  route,  but  King  Winter 
ruled  the  range  with  an  iron  hand,  fully  six  inches 
of  snow  covering  the  pasture,  over  which  was  a 
crusted  sleet  capable  of  carrying  the  weight  of  a  beef. 
The  foreman  and  his  men  were  working  night 
and  day  to  succor  the  cattle.  Between  storms,  two 


340  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

crews  of  the  boys  drifted  everything  back  from  the 
south  line  of  fence,  while  others  cut  ice  and  opened 
the  water  to  the  perishing  animals.    Scarcity  of 
food  was  the  most  serious  matter ;  being  unable  to 
reach  the  grass  under  its  coat  of  sleet  and  snow, 
the  cattle  had  eaten  the  willows  down  to  the  ground. 
When  a  boy  in  Virginia  I  had  often  helped  cut 
down  basswood  and  maple  trees  in  the  spring  for  the 
cattle  to  browse  upon,  and,  sending  to  the  agency 
for  new  axes,  I  armed  every  man  on  the  ranch  with 
one,   and  we  began  felling  the    cottonwood  and 
other  edible  timber  along  the  creeks  and  rivers  in 
the  pasture.    The  cattle  followed  the  axemen  like 
sheep,  eating  the  tender  branches  of  the   softer 
woods  to  the  size  of  a  man's  wrist,  the  crash  of  a 
falling  tree  bringing  them  by  the  dozens  to  browse 
and  stay  their  hunger.    I  swung  an  axe  with  the 
men,  and  never  did  slaves  under  the  eye  of  a  task 
master  work  as  faithfully  or  as  long  as  we  did  in 
cutting  ice   and  falling  timber   in  succoring  our 
holding  of  cattle.     Several   times   the   sun   shone 
warm  for  a  few  days,  melting  the  snow  off  the 
southern    slopes,  when  we    took   to  our  saddles, 
breaking  the  crust  with  long  poles,  the  cattle  follow 
ing  to  where  the  range  was  bared  that  they  might 
get  a  bit  of  grass.    Had  it  not  been  for  a  few  such 
sunny  days,  our  loss  would  have  been  double  what 
it  was ;  but  as  it  was,  with  the  general  range  in 
the  clutches  of  sleet  and  snow  for  over  fifty  days, 


HOLDING  THE   FORT  341 

about  twenty  per  cent,  of  our  holdings  were  winter 
killed,  principally  of  through  cattle. 

Our  saddle  stock,  outside  of  what  was  stabled 
and  grain-fed,  braved  the  winter,  pawing  away  the 
snow  and  sleet  in  foraging  for  their  subsistence. 
A  few  weeks  of  fine  balmy  weather  in  January  and 
February  followed  the  distressing  season  of  wintry 
storms,  the  cattle  taking  to  the  short  buffalo-grass 
and  rapidly  recuperating.  But  just  when  we  felt 
that  the  worst  was  over,  simultaneously  half  a 
dozen  prairie  fires  broke  out  in  different  portions 
of  the  pasture,  calling  every  man  to  a  fight  that 
lasted  three  days.  Our  enemies,  not  content  with 
havoc  wrought  by  the  elements,  were  again  in  the 
saddle,  striking  in  the  dark  and  escaping  before 
dawn,  inflicting  injuries  on  dumb  animals  in  har 
assing  their  owners.  That  it  was  the  work  of  hire 
ling  renegades,  more  likely  white  than  red,  there 
was  little  question ;  but  the  necessity  of  preserving 
the  range  withheld  us  from  trailing  them  down 
and  meting  out  a  justice  they  so  richly  deserved. 
Dividing  the  ranch  help  into  half  a  dozen  crews, 
we  rode  to  the  burning  grass  and  began  counter- 
firing  and  otherwise  resorting  to  every  known 
method  in  checking  the  consuming  flames.  One  of 
the  best-known  devices,  in  short  grass  and  flank- 
fires,  was  the  killing  of  a  light  beef,  beheading  and 
splitting  it  open,  leaving  the  hide  to  hold  the  parts 
together.  By  turning  the  animal  flesh  side  down 


342  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

and  taking  ropes  from  a  front  and  hind  foot  to  the 
pommels  of  two  saddles,  the  men,  by  riding  apart, 
could  straddle  the  flames,  virtually  rubbing  the  fire 
out  with  the  dragging  carcass.  Other  men  followed 
with  wet  blankets  and  beat  out  any  remaining 
flames,  the  work  being  carried  on  at  a  gallop,  with 
a  change  of  horses  every  mile  or  so,  and  the  fire 
was  thus  constantly  hemmed  in  to  a  point.  The 
variations  of  the  wind  sometimes  entirely  checked 
all  effort,  between  midnight  and  morning  being  the 
hours  in  which  most  progress  was  accomplished. 
No  sooner  was  one  section  of  the  fire  brought  under 
control  than  we  divided  the  forces  and  hastened  to 
lend  assistance  to  the  next  nearest  section,  the 
cooks  with  commissaries  following  up  the  firefight 
ers.  While  a  single  blade  of  grass  was  burning, 
no  one  thought  of  sleeping,  and  after  one  third  of 
the  range  was  consumed,  the  last  of  the  incendiary 
fires  was  stamped  out,  when  we  lay  down  around 
the  wagons  and  slept  the  sleep  of  exhaustion. 

There  was  still  enough  range  saved  to  bring  the 
cattle  safely  through  until  spring.  Leaving  the 
entire  ranch  outfit  to  ride  the  fences  —  several  lines 
of  which  were  found  cut  by  the  renegades  in  enter 
ing  and  leaving  the  pasture — and  guard  the  gates,  I 
took  train  and  stage  for  the  Grove.  Major  Hunter 
had  returned  from  the  firm's  ranch  in  the  Strip, 
where  heavy  losses  were  encountered,  though  it 
then  rested  in  perfect  security  from  any  influence 


HOLDING  THE  FORT  343 

except  the  elements.  With  me,  the  burning  of  the 
company  range  might  be  renewed  at  any  moment, 
in  which  event  we  should  have  to  cut  our  own 
fences  and  let  the  cattle  drift  south  through  an 
Indian  country,  with  nothing  to  check  them  except 
Red  River.  A  climax  was  approaching  in  the 
company's  existence,  and  the  delay  of  a  day  or 
week  might  mean  inestimable  loss.  In  cunning  and 
craftiness  our  enemies  were  expert;  they  knew 
their  control  of  the  situation  fully,  and  nothing  but 
cowardice  would  prevent  their  striking  the  final, 
victorious  blow.  My  old  partner  and  I  were  a  unit 
as  to  the  only  course  to  pursue,  —  one  which  meant 
a  dishonorable  compromise  with  our  enemies,  as 
the  only  hope  of  saving  the  cattle.  A  wire  was 
accordingly  sent  East,  calling  a  special  meeting  of 
the  stockholders.  We  followed  ourselves  within 
an  hour.  On  arriving  at  the  national  capital,  we 
found  that  all  outside  shareholders  had  arrived  in 
advance  of  ourselves,  and  we  went  into  session  with 
closed  doors  and  the  committee  on  entertainment 
and  banquets  inactive.  In  as  plain  words  as  the 
English  language  would  permit,  as  general  manager 
of  the  company,  I  stated  the  cause  for  calling  the 
meeting,  and  bluntly  suggested  the  only  avenue  of 
escape.  Call  it  tribute,  blackmail,  or  what  you  will, 
we  were  at  the  mercy  of  as  heartless  a  set  of  scoun 
drels  as  ever  missed  a  rope,  whose  mercenaries, 
like  the  willing  hirelings  that  they  were,  would 


344  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

cheerfully  do  the  bidding  of  their  superiors.  Major 
Hunter,  in  his  remarks  before  the  meeting,  modi 
fied  my  rather  radical  statement,  with  the  more 
plausible  argument  that  this  tribute  money  was 
merely  insurance,  and  what  was  five  or  ten  thou 
sand  dollars  a  year,  where  an  original  investment 
of  three  millions  and  our  surplus  were  in  jeopardy  ? 
Would  any  line  —  life,  fire,  or  marine  —  carry  our 
risk  as  cheaply?  These  men  had  been  receiving 
toll  from  our  predecessors,  and  were  then  in  a 
position  to  levy  tribute  or  wreck  the  company. 

Notwithstanding  our  request  for  immediate  ac 
tion,  an  adjournment  was  taken.  A  wire  could 
have  been  sent  to  a  friend  in  Fort  Reno  that  night, 
and  all  would  have  gone  well  for  the  future  security 
of  the  Cheyenne  and  Arapahoe  Cattle  Company. 
But  I  lacked  authority  to  send  it,  and  the  next 
morning  at  the  meeting,  the  New  England  blood 
that  had  descended  from  the  Puritan  Fathers  was 
again  in  the  saddle,  shouting  the  old  slogans  of  no 
compromise  while  they  had  God  and  right  on  their 
side.  Major  Hunter  and  I  both  keenly  felt  the 
rebuke,  but  personal  friends  prevented  an  open 
rupture,  while  the  more  conservative  ones  saw 
brighter  prospects  in  the  political  change  of  ad 
ministration  which  was  soon  to  assume  the  reins  of 
government.  A  number  of  congressmen  and  sen 
ators  among  our  stockholders  were  prominent  in 
the  ascendant  party,  and  once  the  new  regime 


HOLDING   THE   FORT  345 

took  charge,  a  general  shake-up  of  affairs  in  and 
around  Fort  Reno  was  promised.  I  remembered 
the  old  maxim  of  a  new  broom;  yet  in  spite  of  the 
blandishments  that  were  showered  down  in  silen 
cing  my  active  partner  and  me,  I  could  almost  smell 
the  burning  range,  see  the  horizon  lighted  up  at 
night  by  the  licking  flames,  hear  the  gloating  of 
our  enemies,  in  the  hour  of  their  victory,  and  the 
click  of  the  nippers  of  my  own  men,  in  cutting  the 
wire  that  the  cattle  might  escape  and  live. 

I  left  Washington  somewhat  heartened.  Major 
Hunter,  ever  inclined  to  look  on  the  bright  side  of 
things,  believed  that  the  crisis  had  passed,  even 
bolstering  up  my  hopes  in  the  next  administration. 
It  was  the  immediate  necessity  that  was  worrying 
me,  for  it  meant  a  summer's  work  to  gather  our 
cattle  on  Red  River  and  in  the  intermediate  coun 
try,  and  bring  them  back  to  the  home  range.  The 
mysterious  absence  of  any  report  from  my  foreman 
on  my  arrival  at  the  Grove  did  not  mislead  me  to 
believe  that  no  news  was  good  news,  and  I  accord 
ingly  hurried  on  to  the  front.  There  was  a  marked 
respect  shown  me  by  the  civilians  located  at  Fort 
Reno,  something  unusual;  but  I  hurried  on  to  the 
agency,  where  all  was  quiet,  and  thence  to  ranch 
headquarters.  There  I  learned  that  a  second  at 
tempt  to  burn  the  range  had  been  frustrated ;  that 
one  of  our  boys  had  shot  dead  a  white  man  in  the 
act  of  cutting  the  east  string  of  fence ;  that  the 


346  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

same  night  three  fires  had  broken  out  in  the  pas 
ture,  and  that  a  squad  of  our  men,  in  riding  to  the 
light,  had  run  afoul  of  two  renegade  Cheyennes 
armed  with  wire-nippers,  whose  remains  then  lay  in 
the  pasture  unburied.  Both  horses  were  captured 
and  identified  as  not  belonging  to  the  Indians, 
while  their  owners  were  well  known.  Fortunately 
the  wind  veered  shortly  after  the  fires  started, 
driving  the  flames  back  against  the  plowed  guards, 
and  the  attempt  to  burn  the  range  came  to  naught. 
A  salutary  lesson  had  been  administered  to  the 
hirelings  of  the  usurpers,  and  with  a  new  moon 
approaching  its  full,  it  was  believed  that  night 
marauding  had  ended  for  that  winter.  None  of 
our  boys  recognized  the  white  man,  there  being  no 
doubt  but  he  was  imported  for  the  purpose,  and  he 
was  buried  where  he  fell ;  but  I  notified  the  Indian 
agent,  who  sent  for  the  remains  of  the  two  rene 
gades  and  took  possession  of  the  horses.  The  season 
for  the  beginning  of  active  operations  on  trail  and 
for  ranch  account  was  fast  approaching,  and,  leav 
ing  the  boys  to  hold  the  fort  during  my  absence, 
I  took  my  private  horses  and  turned  homeward. 


CHAPTER  XXI 
THE  FRUITS   OF  CONSPIRACY 

WITH  a  loss  of  fully  fifteen  thousand  cattle  staring 
me  in  the  face,  I  began  planning  to  recuperate  the 
fortunes  of  the  company.  The  cattle  convention, 
which  was  then  over,  was  conspicuous  by  the  ab 
sence  of  all  Northern  buyers.  George  Edwards 
had  attended  the  meeting,  was  cautious  enough  to 
make  no  contracts  for  the  firm,  and  fully  warned 
me  of  the  situation.  I  was  in  a  quandary ;  with  an 
idle  treasury  of  over  a  million,  my  stewardship 
would  be  subject  to  criticism  unless  I  became  ac 
tive  in  the  interests  of  my  company.  On  the  other 
hand,  a  dangerous  cloud  hung  over  the  range,  and 
until  that  was  removed  I  felt  like  a  man  who  was 
sent  for  and  did  not  want  to  go.  The  falling 
market  in  Texas  was  an  encouragement,  but  my 
experience  of  the  previous  winter  had  had  a  damp 
ening  effect,  and  I  was  simply  drifting  between 
adverse  winds.  But  once  it  was  known  that  I  had 
returned  home,  my  old  customers  approached  me 
by  letter  and  personally,  anxious  to  sell  and  con 
tract  for  immediate  delivery.  Trail  drovers  were 
standing  aloof,  afraid  of  the  upper  markets,  and 


348  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

I  could  have  easily  bought  double  my  requirements 
without  leaving  the  ranch.  The  grass  was  peeping 
here  and  there,  favorable  reports  came  down  from 
the  reservation,  and  still  I  sat  idle. 

The  appearance  of  Major  Hunter  acted  like  a 
stimulus.  Reports  about  the  new  administration 
were  encouraging — not  from  our  silent  partner,  who 
was  not  in  sympathy  with  the  dominant  party,  but 
from  other  prominent  stockholders  who  were.  The 
original  trio  —  the  little  major,  our  segundo,  and 
myself  —  lay  around  under  the  shade  of  the  trees 
several  days  and  argued  the  possibilities  that  con 
fronted  us  on  trail  and  ranch.  Edwards  reproached 
me  for  my  fears,  referring  to  the  time,  nineteen 
years  before,  when  as  common  hands  we  fought 
our  way  across  the  Staked  Plain  and  delivered 
the  cattle  safely  at  Fort  Sumner.  He  even  taunted 
me  with  the  fact  that  our  employers  then  never 
hesitated,  even  if  half  the  Comanche  tribe  were 
abroad,  roving  over  their  old  hunting  grounds, 
and  that  now  I  was  afraid  of  a  handful  of  army 
followers,  contractors,  and  owners  of  bar  conces 
sions.  Edwards  knew  that  I  would  stand  his 
censure  and  abuse  as  long  as  the  truth  was  told, 
and  with  the  major  acting  as  peacemaker  between 
us  I  was  finally  whipped  into  line.  With  a  for 
tune  already  in  hand,  rounding  out  my  forty-fifth 
year,  I  looted  the  treasury  by  contracting  and 
buying  sixty  thousand  cattle  for  my  company. 


THE   FRUITS   OF   CONSPIRACY        349 

The  surplus  horses  were  ordered  down  from 
above,  and  the  spring  campaign  began  in  earnest. 
The  old  firm  was  to  confine  its  operations  to  fine 
steers,  handling  my  personal  contribution  as  before, 
while  I  rallied  my  assistants,  and  we  began  receiv 
ing  the  contracted  cattle  at  once.  Observation  had 

O 

taught  me  that  in  wintering  beeves  in  the  North  it 
was  important  to  give  the  animals  every  possible 
moment  of  time  to  locate  before  the  approach  of 
winter.  The  instinct  of  a  dumb  beast  is  unexplain- 
able  yet  unerring.  The  owner  of  a  horse  may 
choose  a  range  that  seems  perfect  in  every  appoint 
ment,  but  the  animal  will  spurn  the  human  selec 
tion  and  take  up  his  abode  on  some  flinty  hills, 
and  there  thrive  like  a  garden  plant.  Cattle,  espe 
cially  steers,  locate  slowly,  and  a  good  summer's 
rest  usually  fortifies  them  with  an  inward  coat  of 
tallow  and  an  outward  one  of  furry  robe,  against 
the  wintry  storms.  I  was  anxious  to  get  the  through 
cattle  to  the  new  range  as  soon  as  practicable, 
and  allowed  the  sellers  to  set  their  dates  as  early  as 
possible,  many  of  them  agreeing  to  deliver  on  the 
reservation  as  soon  as  the  middle  of  May.  Ten 
wagons  and  a  thousand  horses  came  down  during 
the  last  days  of  March,  and  early  in  April  started 
back  with  thirty  thousand  cattle  at  company  risk. 
All  animals  were  passed  upon  on  the  Texas 
range,  and  on  their  arrival  at  the  pasture  there 
was  little  to  do  but  scatter  them  over  the  ranch  to 


350  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

locate.  I  reached  the  reservation  with  the  lead 
herd,  and  was  glad  to  learn  from  neighboring 
cowmen  that  a  suggestion  of  mine,  made  the  fall 
before,  had  taken  root.  My  proposition  was  to 
organize  all  the  cattlemen  on  the  Cheyenne  and 
Arapahoe  reservation  into  an  association  for  mutual 
protection.  By  cooperation  we  could  present  a 
united  front  to  our  enemies,  the  usurpers,  and  defy 
them  in  their  nefarious  schemes  of  exacting  tribute. 
Other  ranges  besides  ours  had  suffered  by  fire  and 
fence-cutters  during  the  winter  just  passed,  and 
I  returned  to  find  my  fellow  cowmen  a  unit  for 
organization.  A  meeting  was  called  at  the  agency, 
every  owner  of  cattle  on  the  reservation  responded, 
and  an  association  was  perfected  for  our  mutual 
interest  and  protection.  The  reservation  was  easily 
capable  of  carrying  half  a  million  cattle,  the  tribes 
were  pleased  with  the  new  order  of  things,  and  we 
settled  down  with  a  feeling  of  security  not  enjoyed 
in  many  a  day. 

But  our  tranquil  existence  received  a  shock 
within  a  month,  when  a  cowboy  from  a  neighbor 
ing  ranch,  and  without  provocation,  was  shot  down 
by  Indian  police  in  a  trader's  store  at  the  agency. 
The  young  fellow  was  a  popular  Texan,  and  as 
nearly  all  the  men  employed  on  the  reservation 
came  from  the  South,  it  was  with  difficulty  that 
our  boys  were  restrained  from  retaliating.  Those 
from  Texas  had  little  or  no  love  for  an  Indian 


THE   FRUITS   OF  CONSPIRACY        351 

anyhow,  and  nothing  but  the  plea  of  policy  in  pre 
serving  peaceful  relations  with  the  tribes  held 
them  in  check.  The  occasional  killing  of  cattle  by 
Indians  was  overlooked,  until  they  became  so  bold 
as  to  leave  the  hides  and  heads  in  the  pasture, 
when  an  appeal  was  made  to  the  agent.  But  the 
aborigine,  like  his  white  brother,  has  sinful  ways, 
and  the  influence  of  one  evil  man  can  readily  com 
bat  the  good  advice  of  half  a  dozen  right-minded 
ones,  and  the  Quaker  agent  found  his  task  not  an 
easy  one.  Cattle  were  being  killed  in  remote  and 
unfrequented  places,  and  still  we  bore  with  it,  the 
better  class  of  Indians,  however,  lending  their  as 
sistance  to  check  the  abuse.  On  one  occasion  two 
boys  and  myself  detected  a  band  of  five  young 
bucks  skinning  a  beef  in  our  pasture,  and  nothing 
but  my  presence  prevented  a  clash  between  my 
men  and  the  thieves.  But  it  was  near  the  wild-plum 
season,  and  as  we  were  making  preparations  to 
celebrate  that  event,  the  killing  of  a  few  Indians 
might  cause  distrust,  and  we  dropped  out  of  sight 
and  left  them  to  the  enjoyment  of  their  booty.  It 
was  pure  policy  on  my  part,  as  we  could  shame 
or  humble  the  Indian,  and  if  the  abuse  was  not 
abated,  we  could  remunerate  ourselves  by  with 
holding  from  the  rent  money  the  value  of  cattle 
killed. 

Our  organization  for  mutual  protection  was  ac 
cepted  by  our  enemies  as  a  final  defiance.  A  pirate 


352  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

fights  as  valiantly  as  if  his  cause  were  just,  and, 
through  intermediaries,  the  gauntlet  was  thrown 
back  in  our  faces  and  notice  served  that  the  con 
flict  had  reached  a  critical  stage.  I  never  discussed 
the  issue  direct  with  members  of  the  clique,  as 
they  looked  upon  me  as  the  leader  in  resisting  their 
levy  of  tribute,  but  indirectly  their  grievances  were 
made  known.  We  were  accused  of  having  taken 
the  bread  out  of  their  very  mouths,  which  was  true 
in  a  sense,  but  we  had  restored  it  tenfold  where  it 
was  entitled  to  go,  —  among  the  Indians.  With 
the  exception  of  an  occasional  bottle  of  whiskey, 
none  of  the  tribute  money  went  to  the  tribes,  but 
was  divided  among  the  usurpers.  They  waxed  fat 
in  their  calling  and  were  insolent  and  determined, 
while  our  replies  to  all  overtures  looking  to  peace 
were  firm  and  to  the  point.  Even  at  that  late  hour 
I  personally  knew  that  the  clique  had  strength  in 
reserve,  and  had  I  enjoyed  the  support  of  my  com 
pany,  would  willingly  have  stood  for  a  compromise. 
But  it  was  out  of  the  question  to  suggest  it,  and, 
trusting  to  the  new  administration,  we  politely  told 
them  to  crack  their  whips. 

The  fiesta  which  followed  the  plum  gathering  was 
made  a  notable  occasion.  All  the  cowmen  on  the 
reservation  had  each  contributed  a  beef  to  the  bar 
becue,  the  agent  saw  to  it  that  all  the  principal 
chiefs  of  both  tribes  were  present,  and  after  two 
days  of  feasting,  the  agent  made  a  Quaker  talk, 


THE   FRUITS   OF   CONSPIRACY        353 

insisting  that  the  bond  between  the  tribes  and  the 
cowmen  must  be  observed  to  the  letter.  He  re 
viewed  at  length  the  complaints  that  had  reached 
him  of  the  killing  of  cattle,  traceable  to  the  young 
and  thoughtless,  and  pointed  out  the  patience  of  the 
cattlemen  in  not  retaliating,  but  in  spreading  a  ban 
quet  instead  to  those  who  had  wronged  them.  In 
concluding,  he  warned  them  that  the  patience  of 
the  white  man  had  a  limit,  and,  while  they  hoped 
to  live  in  peace,  unless  the  stealing  of  beef  was 
stopped  immediately,  double  the  value  of  the  cattle 
killed  would  be  withheld  from  the  next  payment 
of  grass  money.  It  was  in  the  power  of  the  chiefs 
present  to  demand  this  observance  of  faith  among 
their  young  men,  if  the  bond  to  which  their  signa 
tures  were  attached  was  to  be  respected  in  the 
future.  The  leading  chiefs  of  both  tribes  spoke  in 
defense,  pleading  their  inability  to  hold  their  young 
men  in  check  as  long  as  certain  evil  influences  were 
at  work  among  their  people.  The  love  of  gambling 
and  strong  drink  was  yearly  growing  among  their 
men,  making  them  forget  their  spoken  word,  until 
they  were  known  as  thieves  and  liars.  The  remedy 
lay  in  removing  these  evil  spirits  and  trusting  the 
tribes  to  punish  their  own  offenders,  as  the  red  man 
knew  no  laws  except  his  own. 

The  festival  was  well  worth  while  and  augured 
hopefully  for  the  future.  Clouds  were  hovering  on 
the  horizon,  however,  and,  while  at  Ogalalla,  I 


354  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

received  a  wire  that  a  complaint  had  been  filed 
against  us   at  the    national  capital,  and  that  the 
President  had  instructed  the  Lieutenant-General  of 
the  Army  to  make   an  investigation.    Just  what 
the  inquiry  was  to  be  was  a  matter  of  conjecture ; 
possibly  to  determine  who  was  supplying  the  In 
dians  with  whiskey,  or   probably  our   friends    at 
Washington  were  behind  the  movement,  and  the 
promised  shake-up  of  army  followers  in  and  around 
Fort  Reno  was  materializing.    I  attended  to  some 
unsettled  business  before  returning,  and,  on  my 
arrival   at  the    reservation,  a   general   alarm  was 
spreading  among  the  cattle  interests,  caused  by  the 
cock-sure  attitude  of  the  usurpers  and  a  few  casual 
remarks  that  had  been  dropped.    I  was  appealed 
to  by  my  fellow  cowmen,  and,  in  turn,  wired  our 
friends  at  Washington,  asking  that  our  interests 
be  looked  after  and  guarded.    Pending  a  report, 
General  P.  H.  Sheridan  arrived  with  a  great  blare 
of  trumpets  at  Fort  Reno  for  the  purpose  of  hold 
ing   the    authorized  investigation.    The  general's 
brother,  Michael,  was  the  recognized  leader  of  the 
clique  of  army  followers,  and  was  interested  in  the 
bar  concessions  under  the  sutler.    Matters,  there 
fore,  took  on  a  serious  aspect.    All  the  cowmen  on 
the  reservation   came  in,  expecting  to  be  called 
before  the  inquiry,  as  it  was  then  clear  that  a  fight 
must  be  made  to  protect  our  interests.    No  oppor 
tunity,  however,  was  given  the  Indians  or  cattle- 


THE  FRUITS  OF  CONSPIRACY       355 

men  to  present  their  side  of  the  question,  and 
when  a  committee  of  us  cowmen  called  on  General 
Sheridan  we  were  cordially  received  and  politely 
informed  that  the  investigation  was  private.  I  be 
lieve  that  forty  years  have  so  tempered  the  animos 
ities  of  the  Civil  War  that  an  honest  opinion  is 
entitled  to  expression.  And  with  due  consideration 
to  the  record  of  a  gallant  soldier,  I  submit  the 
question,  Were  not  the  owners  of  half  a  million 
cattle  on  the  Cheyenne  and  Arapahoe  reservation 
entitled  to  a  hearing  before  a  report  was  made  that 
resulted  in  an  order  for  their  removal? 

I  have  seen  more  trouble  at  a  country  dance, 
more  bloodshed  in  a  family  feud,  than  ever  existed 
or  was  spilled  on  the  Cheyenne  and  Arapahoe  re 
servation.  The  Indians  were  pleased,  the  lessees 
were  satisfied,  yet  by  artfully  concealing  the  true 
cause  of  any  and  all  strife,  a  report,  every  word  of 
which  was  as  sweet  as  the  notes  of  a  flute,  was 
made  to  the  President,  recommending  the  removal 
of  the  cattle.  It  was  found  that  there  had  been  a 
gradual  encroachment  on  the  liberties  of  the  tribes  ; 
that  the  rental  received  from  the  surplus  pasture 
lands  had  a  bad  tendency  on  the  morals  of  the  In 
dians,  encouraging  them  in  idleness ;  and  that  the 
present  system  retarded  all  progress  in  agriculture 
and  the  industrial  arts.  The  report  was  superficial, 
religiously  concealing  the  truth,  but  dealing  with 
broad  generalities.  Had  the  report  emanated  from 


356  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

some  philanthropical  society,  it  would  have  passed 
unnoticed  or  been  commented  on  as  an  advance  in 
the  interest  of  a  worthy  philanthropy  •  but  taken  as 
a  whole,  it  was  a  splendid  specimen  of  the  use  to 
which  words  can  be  put  in  concealing  the  truth 
and  cloaking  dishonesty. 

An  order  of  removal  by  the  President  followed 
the  report.  Had  we  been  subjects  of  a  despotic 
government  and  bowed  our  necks  like  serfs,  the 
matter  would  have  ended  in  immediate  compliance 
with  the  order.  But  we  prided  ourselves  on  our 
liberties  as  Americans,  and  an  appeal  was  to  be 
made  to  the  first  citizen  of  the  land,  the  President 
of  the  United  States.  A  committee  of  Western 
men  were  appointed,  which  would  be  augmented  by 
others  at  the  national  capital,  and  it  was  proposed 
to  lay  the  bare  facts  in  the  chief  executive's  hands 
and  at  least  ask  for  a  modification  of  the  order. 
The  latter  was  ignorant  in  its  conception,  brutal 
and  inhuman  in  its  intent,  ending  in  the  threat  to 
use  the  military  arm  of  the  government,  unless  the 
terms  and  conditions  were  complied  with  within  a 
given  space  of  time.  The  Cheyenne  and  Arapahoe 
Cattle  Company,  alone,  not  to  mention  the  other 
members  of  our  association  equally  affected,  had 
one  hundred  and  twenty-five  thousand  head  of 
beeves  and  through  steers  on  its  range,  and  unless 
some  relief  was  granted,  a  wayfaring  man  though 
a  fool  could  see  ruin  and  death  and  desolation 


THE  FRUITS   OF  CONSPIRACY      357 

staring  us  in  the  face.  Fortunately  Major  Hunter 
had  the  firm's  trail  affairs  so  well  in  hand  that 
Edwards  could  close  up  the  business,  thus  reliev 
ing  my  active  partner  to  serve  on  the  committee, 
he  and  four  others  offering  to  act  in  behalf  of  our 
association  in  calling  on  the  President.  I  was 
among  the  latter,  the  only  one  in  the  delegation 
from  Texas,  and  we  accordingly  made  ready  and 
started  for  Washington. 

Meanwhile  I  had  left  orders  to  start  the  ship 
ping  with  a  vengeance.  The  busy  season  was  at 
hand  on  the  beef  ranges,  and  men  were  scarce  ;  but 
I  authorized  the  foreman  to  comb  the  country,  send 
to  Dodge  if  necessary,  and  equip  ten  shipping  out 
fits  and  keep  a  constant  string  of  cattle  moving  to 
the  markets.  We  had  about  sixty-five  thousand 
single  and  double  wintered  beeves,  the  greater  por 
tion  of  which  were  in  prime  condition;  but  it  was 
the  through  cattle  that  were  worrying  me,  as  they 
were  unfit  to  ship  and  it  was  too  late  in  the  season 
to  relocate  them  on  a  new  range.  But  that  blessed 
hope  that  springs  eternal  in  the  human  breast  kept 
us  hopeful  that  the  President  had  been  deceived 
into  issuing  his  order,  and  that  he  would  right  all 
wrongs.  The  more  sanguine  ones  of  the  Western 
delegation  had  matters  figured  down  to  a  fraction  ; 
they  believed  that  once  the  chief  executive  under 
stood  the  true  cause  of  the  friction  existing  on  the 
reservation,  apologies  would  follow,  we  should  all 


358  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

be  asked  to  remain  for  lunch,  and  in  the  most  de 
mocratic  manner  imaginable  everything  would  be 
righted.  I  had  no  opinions,  but  kept  anticipating 
the  worst;  for  if  the  order  stood  unmodified,  go  we 
must  and  in  the  face  of  winter  and  possibly  accom 
panied  by  negro  troops.  To  return  to  Texas  meant 
to  scatter  the  cattle  to  the  four  winds ;  to  move 
north  was  to  court  death  unless  an  open  winter 
favored  us. 

On  our  arrival  at  Washington,  all  senators  and 
congressmen  shareholders  in  our  company  met  us 
by  appointment.  It  was  an  inactive  season  at  the 
capital,  and  hopes  were  entertained  that  the  Pre 
sident  would  grant  us  an  audience  at  once ;  but  a 
delay  of  nearly  a  week  occurred.  In  the  mean  time 
several  conferences  were  held,  at  which  a  general 
review  of  the  situation  was  gone  over,  and  it  was 
decided  to  modify  our  demands,  asking  for  nothing 
personally,  only  a  modification  of  the  order  in  the 
interest  of  humanity  to  dumb  animals.  Before  our 
arrival,  a  congressman  and  two  senators,  political 
supporters  of  the  chief  executive,  had  casually  called 
to  pay  their  respects,  and  incidentally  inquired  into 
the  pending  trouble  between  the  cattlemen  and  the 
Cheyenne  and  Arapahoe  Indians.  Reports  were  any 
thing  but  encouraging ;  the  well-known  obstinacy 
of  the  President  was  admitted;  it  was  also  known 
that  he  possessed  a  rugged  courage  in  pursuance  of 
an  object  or  purpose.  Those  who  were  not  in  polit- 


THE  FRUITS   OF  CONSPIRACY      359 

ical  sympathy  with  the  party  in  power  charac 
terized  the  President  as  an  opinionated  executive, 
and  could  see  little  or  no  hope  in  a  personal  appeal. 
However,  the  matter  was  not  to  be  dropped.  The 
arrival  of  a  deputation  of  cattlemen  from  the  West 
was  reported  by  the  press,  their  purposes  fully  set 
forth,  and  in  the  interim  of  waiting  for  an  appoint 
ment,  all  of  us  made  hay  with  due  diligence.  Major 
Hunter  and  I  had  a  passing  acquaintance  at  both 
the  War  and  Interior  departments,  and  taking 
along  senators  and  representatives  in  political  sym 
pathy  with  the  heads  of  those  offices,  we  called 
and  paid  our  respects.  A  number  of  old  acquaint 
ances  were  met,  hold-overs  from  the  former  regime, 
and  a  cordial  reception  was  accorded  us.  Now  that 
the  boom  in  cattle  was  over,  we  expressed  a  desire 
to  resume  our  former  business  relations  as  contrac 
tors  with  the  government.  At  both  departments, 
the  existent  trouble  on  the  Indian  reservations  was 
well  known,  and  a  friendly  inquiry  resulted,  which 
gave  us  an  opportunity  to  explain  our  position  fully. 
There  was  a  hopeful  awakening  to  the  fact  that 
there  had  been  a  conspiracy  to  remove  us,  and  the 
most  friendly  advances  of  assistance  were  proffered 
in  setting  the  matter  right.  Public  opinion  is  a 
strong  factor,  and  with  the  press  of  the  capital  air 
ing  our  grievances  daily,  sympathy  and  encourage 
ment  were  simply  showered  down  upon  us. 

Finally  an    audience   with   the   President   was 


360  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

granted.  The  Western  delegation  was  increased  by 
senators  and  representatives  until  the  committee 
numbered  an  even  dozen.  Many  of  the  latter  were 
personal  friends  and  ardent  supporters  of  the  chief 
executive.  The  rangemen  were  introduced,  and  we 
proceeded  at  once  to  the  matter  at  issue.  A  con 
gressman  from  New  York  stated  the  situation  clearly, 
not  mincing  his  words  in  condemning  the  means 
and  procedure  by  which  this  order  was  secured,  and 
finally  asking  for  its  revocation,  or  a  modification 
that  would  permit  the  evacuation  of  the  country  with 
out  injury  to  the  owners  and  their  herds.  Major 
Hunter,  in  replying  to  a  question  of  the  President, 
stated  our  position :  that  we  were  in  no  sense  in 
truders,  that  we  paid  our  rental  in  advance,  with  the 
knowledge  and  sanction  of  the  two  preceding  Secre 
taries  of  the  Interior,  and  only  for  lack  of  precedent 
was  their  indorsement  of  our  leases  withheld.  It 
soon  became  evident  that  countermanding  the  order 
was  out  of  the  question,  as  to  vacillate  or  waver  in 
a  purpose,  right  or  wrong,  was  not  a  characteristic 
of  the  chief  executive.  Our  next  move  was  for  a 
modification  of  the  order,  as  its  terms  required  us 
to  evacuate  that  fall,  and  every  cowman  present 
accented  the  fact  that  to  move  cattle  in  the  mouth 
of  winter  was  an  act  that  no  man  of  experience 
would  countenance.  Every  step,  the  why  and  where 
fore,  must  be  explained  to  the  President,  and  at  the 
request  of  the  committee,  I  went  into  detail  in 


THE   FRUITS   OF   CONSPIRACY        361 

making  plain  what  the  observations  of  my  life  had 
taught  me  of  the  instincts  and  habits  of  cattle,  — 
why  in  the  summer  they  took  to  the  hills,  mesas, 
and  uplands,  where  the  breezes  were  cooling  and 
protected  them  from  insect  life  ;  their  ability  to  fore 
tell  a  storm  in  winter  and  geek  shelter  in  coulees 
and  broken  country.  I  explained  that  none  of  the 
cattle  on  the  Cheyenne  and  Arapahoe  reservation 
were  native  to  that  range,  but  were  born  anywhere 
from  three  to  five  hundred  miles  to  the  south,  fully 
one  half  of  them  having  arrived  that  spring ;  that 
to  acquaint  an  animal  with  its  new  range,  in  cattle 
parlance  to  "  locate  "  them,  was  very  important ; 
that  every  practical  cowman  moved  his  herds  to  a 
new  range  with  the  grass  in  the  spring,  in  order 
that  ample  time  should  be  allowed  to  acclimate  and 
familiarize  them  with  such  shelters  as  nature  pro 
vided  to  withstand  the  storms  of  winter.  In  con 
cluding,  I  stated  that  if  the  existent  order  could  be 
so  modified  as  to  permit  all  through  cattle  and 
those  unfit  for  market  to  remain  on  their  present 
range  for  the  winter,  we  would  cheerfully  evacuate 
the  country  with  the  grass  in  the  spring.  If  such 
relief  could  be  consistently  granted,  it  would  no 
doubt  save  the  lives  of  hundreds  and  thousands  of 
cattle. 

The  President  evidently  was  embarrassed  by  the 
justice  of  our  prayer.  He  consulted  with  members 
of  the  committee,  protesting  that  he  should  be 


362  REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

spared  from  taking  what  would  be  considered  a 
backward  step,  and  after  a  stormy  conference  with 
intimate  friends,  lasting  fully  an  hour,  he  returned 
and  in  these  words  refused  to  revoke  or  modify  his 
order :  "  If  I  had  known,"  said  he,  "  what  I  know 
now,  I  never  would  have  made  the  order ;  but  hav 
ing  made  it,  I  will  stand  by  it." 

Laying  aside  all  commercial  considerations,  we 
had  made  our  entreaty  in  behalf  of  dumb  animals, 
and  the  President's  answer  angered  a  majority  of 
the  committee.  I  had  been  rebuked  too  often  in 
the  past  by  my  associates  easily  to  lose  my  temper, 
and  I  naturally  looked  at  those  whose  conscience 
balked  at  paying  tribute,  while  my  sympathies 
were  absorbed  for  the  future  welfare  of  a  quarter- 
million  cattle  affected  by  the  order.  We  broke 
into  groups  in  taking  our  leave,  and  the  only  pro 
test  that  escaped  any  one  was  when  the  York 
State  representative  refused  the  hand  of  the  ex 
ecutive,  saying,  "  Mr.  President,  I  have  my  opinion 
of  a  man  who  admits  he  is  wrong  and  refuses  to 
right  it."  Two  decades  have  passed  since  those 
words,  rebuking  wrong  in  high  places,  were  uttered, 
and  the  speaker  has  since  passed  over  to  the  silent 
majority.  I  should  feel  that  these  memoirs  were 
incomplete  did  I  not  mention  the  sacrifice  and  loss 
of  prestige  that  the  utterance  of  these  words  cost, 
for  they  were  the  severance  of  a  political  friendship 
that  was  never  renewed. 


THE   FRUITS   OF   CONSPIRACY        363 

The  autocratic  order  removing  the  cattle  from 
the  Cheyenne  and  Arapahoe  reservation  was  born 
in  iniquity  and  bore  a  harvest  unequaled  in  the 
annals  of  inhumanity.  With  the  last  harbor  of 
refuge  closed  against  us,  I  hastened  back  and  did 
all  that  was  human  to  avert  the  impending  doom, 
every  man  and  horse  available  being  pressed  into 
service.  Our  one  hope  lay  in  a  mild  winter,  and 
if  that  failed  us  the  affairs  of  the  company  would 
be  closed  by  the  merciless  elements.  Once  it  was 
known  that  the  original  order  had  not  been  modified, 
and  in  anticipation  of  a  flood  of  Western  cattle, 
the  markets  broke,  entailing  a  serious  commercial 
loss.  Every  hoof  of  single  and  double  wintered 
beeves  that  had  a  value  in  the  markets  was  shipped 
regardless  of  price,  while  I  besought  friends  in 
the  Cherokee  Strip  for  a  refuge  for  those  unfit 
and  our  holding  of  through  cattle.  Fortunately 
the  depreciation  in  live  stock  and  the  heavy  loss 
sustained  the  previous  winter  had  interfered  with 
stocking  the  Outlet  to  its  full  capacity,  and  by 
money,  prayers,  and  entreaty  I  prevailed  on  range 
owners  and  secured  pasturage  for  seventy-five  thou 
sand  head.  Long  before  the  shipping  season  ended 
I  pressed  every  outfit  belonging  to  the  firm  on 
the  Eagle  Chief  into  service,  and  began  moving 
out  the  through  cattle  to  their  new  range.  Squaw 
winter  and  snow-squalls  struck  us  on  the  trail,  but 
with  a  time-limit  hanging  over  our  heads,  and  rather 


364  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

than  see  our  cattle  handled  by  nigger  soldiers,  we 
bore  our  burdens,  if  not  meekly,  at  least  in  a  man 
ner  consistent  with  our  occupation.  I  have  always 
deplored  useless  profanity,  yet  it  was  music  to  my 
ears  to  hear  the  men  arraign  our  enemies,  high 
and  low,  for  our  present  predicament.  When  the 
last  beeves  were  shipped,  a  final  round-up  was 
made,  and  we  started  out  with  over  fifty  thousand 
cattle  in  charge  of  twelve  outfits.  Storms  struck  us 
en  route,  but  we  weathered  them,  and  finally  turned 
the  herds  loose  in  the  face  of  a  blizzard. 

The  removed  cattle,  strangers  in  a  strange  land, 
drifted  to  the  fences  and  were  cut  to  the  quick  by 
the  biting  blasts.  Early  in  January  the  worst  bliz 
zard  in  the  history  of  the  plains  swept  down  from 
the  north,  and  the  poor  wandering  cattle  were 
driven  to  the  divides  and  frozen  to  death  against 
the  line  fences.  Of  all  the  appalling  sights  that  an 
ordinary  lifetime  on  the  range  affords,  there  is  no 
thing  to  compare  with  the  suffering  and  death  that 
were  daily  witnessed  during  the  month  of  January 
in  the  winter  of  1885-86.  I  remained  on  the  range, 
and  left  men  at  winter  camps  on  every  pasture  in 
which  we  had  stock,  yet  we  were  powerless  to  relieve 
the  drifting  cattle.  The  morning  after  the  great 
storm,  with  others,  I  rode  to  a  south  string  of  fence 
on  a  divide,  and  found  thousands  of  our  cattle  hud 
dled  against  it,  many  frozen  to  death,  partially 
through  and  hanging  on  the  wire.  We  cut  the 


THE   FRUITS   OF   CONSPIRACY        365 

fences  in  order  to  allow  them  to  drift  on  to  shelter, 
but  the  legs  of  many  of  them  were  so  badly  frozen 
that,  when  they  moved,  the  skin  cracked  open  and 
their  hoofs  dropped  off.  Hundreds  of  young  steers 
were  wandering  aimlessly  around  on  hoofless  stumps, 
while  their  tails  cracked  and  broke  like  icicles.  In 
angles  and  nooks  of  the  fence,  hundreds  had  per 
ished  against  the  wire,  their  bodies  forming  a  scal 
ing  ladder,  permitting  late  arrivals  to  walk  over  the 
dead  and  dying  as  they  passed  on  with  the  fury  of 
the  storm.  I  had  been  a  soldier  and  seen  sad  sights, 
but  nothing  to  compare  to  this ;  the  moaning  of  the 
cattle  freezing  to  death  would  have  melted  a  heart 
of  adamant.  All  we  could  do  was  to  cut  the  fences 
and  let  them  drift,  for  to  halt  was  to  die;  and  when 
the  storm  abated  one  could  have  walked  for  miles 
on  the  bodies  of  dead  animals.  No  pen  could  de 
scribe  the  harrowing  details  of  that  winter;  and  for 
years  afterward,  or  until  their  remains  had  a  com 
mercial  value,  a  wayfarer  could  have  traced  the 
south-line  fences  by  the  bleaching  bones  that  lay  in 
windrows,  glistening  in  the  sun  like  snowdrifts,  to 
remind  us  of  the  closing  chapter  in  the  history  of 
the  Cheyenne  and  Arapahoe  Cattle  Company. 


CHAPTER  XXII 

IN  CONCLUSION 

THE  subsequent  history  of  the  ill-fated  Cheyenne 
and  Arapahoe  Cattle  Company  is  easily  told.  Over 
ninety  per  cent  of  the  cattle  moved  under  the  Presi 
dent's  order  were  missing  at  the  round-up  the  fol 
lowing  spring.  What  few  survived  were  pitiful 
objects,  minus  ears  and  tails,  while  their  horns,  both 
root  and  base,  were  frozen  until  they  drooped  down 
in  unnatural  positions.  Compared  to  the  previous 
one,  the  winter  of  1885-86,  with  the  exception  of 
the  great  January  blizzard,  was  the  less  severe  of 
the  two.  On  the  firm's  range  in  the  Cherokee  Strip 
our  losses  were  much  lighter  than  during  the  pre 
vious  winter,  owing  to  the  fact  that  food  was  plen 
tiful,  there  being  little  if  any  sleet  or  snow  during 
the  latter  year.  Had  we  been  permitted  to  winter 
in  the  Cheyenne  and  Arapahoe  country,  considering 
our  sheltered  range  and  the  cattle  fully  located,  ten 
per  cent  would  have  been  a  conservative  estimate  of 
loss  by  the  elements.  As  manager  of  the  company 
I  lost  five  valuable  years  and  over  a  quarter-million 
dollars.  Time  has  mollified  my  grievances  until 
now  only  the  thorn  of  inhumanity  to  dumb  beasts 


IN   CONCLUSION  367 

remains.  Contrasted  with  results,  how  much  more 
humane  it  would  have  been  to  have  ordered  out 
negro  troops  from  Fort  Reno  and  shot  the  cattle 
down,  or  to  have  cut  the  fences  ourselves,  and, 
while  our  holdings  were  drifting  back  to  Texas, 
trusted  to  the  mercy  of  the  Comanches. 

I  now  understand  perfectly  why  the  business 
world  dreads  a  political  change  in  administration. 
Whatever  may  have  been  the  policy  of  one  political 
party,  the  reverse  becomes  the  slogan  of  the  other  on 
its  promotion  to  power.  For  instance,  a  few  years 
ago,  the  general  government  offered  a  bounty  on  the 
home  product  of  sugar,  stimulating  the  industry  in 
Louisiana  and  also  in  my  adopted  State.  A  change 
of  administration  followed,  the  bounty  was  removed, 
and  had  not  the  insurance  companies  promptly 
canceled  their  risks  on  sugar  mills,  the  losses  by 
fire  would  have  been  appalling.  Politics  had  never 
affected  my  occupation  seriously ;  in  fact  I  profited 
richly  through  the  extravagance  and  mismanage 
ment  of  the  Reconstruction  regime  in  Texas,  and 
again  met  the  defeat  of  my  life  at  the  hands  of  the 
general  government. 

With  the  demand  for  trail  cattle  on  the  decline, 
coupled  with  two  severe  winters,  the  old  firm  of 
Hunter,  Anthony  &  Co.  was  ripe  for  dissolution. 
We  had  enjoyed  the  cream  of  the  trade  while  it 
lasted,  but  conditions  were  changing,  making  it  ne 
cessary  to  limit  and  restrict  our  business.  This  was 


368  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

contrary  to  our  policy,  though  the  spring  of  1886 
found  us  on  the  trail  with  sixteen  herds  for  the  firm 
and  four  from  my  own  ranches,  one  half  of  which 
were  under  contract.  A  dry  summer  followed,  and 
thousands  of  weak  cattle  were  lost  on  the  trail,  while 
ruin  and  bankruptcy  were  the  portion  of  a  majority 
of  the  drovers.  We  weathered  the  drouth  on  the 
trail,  selling  our  unplaced  cattle  early,  and  before 
the  beef -shipping  season  began,  our  range  in  the 
Outlet,  including  good  will,  holding  of  beeves,  sad 
dle  horses,  and  general  improvements,  was  sold  to 
a  Kansas  City  company,  and  the  old  firm  passed 
out  of  existence.  Meanwhile  I  had  closed  up  the 
affairs  of  the  Cheyenne  and  Arapahoe  Company, 
returning  a  small  pro  rata  of  the  original  invest 
ment  to  shareholders,  charging  my  loss  to  tuition 
in  rounding  out  my  education  as  a  cowman. 

The  productive  capacity  of  my  ranches  for  years 
past  safely  tided  me  over  all  financial  difficulties. 
With  all  outside  connections  severed,  I  was  then 
enabled  to  give  my  personal  attention  to  ranching  in 
Texas.  I  was  fortunate  in  having  capable  ranch 
foremen,  for  during  my  almost  continued  absence 
there  was  a  steady  growth,  together  with  thorough 
management  of  my  mixed  cattle.  The  improved 
herd,  now  numbering  over  two  thousand,  was  the 
pride  of  my  operations  in  live  stock,  while  my 
quarter  and  three-eighths  blood  steers  were  in  a 
class  by  themselves.  We  were  breeding  over  a  thou- 


IN   CONCLUSION  369 

sand  half  and  three-quarters  blood  bulls  annually, 
and  constantly  importing  the  best  strains  to  the 
head  of  the  improved  herd.  Results  were  in  evi 
dence,  and  as  long  as  the  trail  lasted,  my  cattle  were 
ready  sellers  in  the  upper  range  markets.  For  the 
following  few  years  I  drove  my  own  growing  of 
steers,  usually  contracting  them  in  advance.  The 
days  of  the  trail  were  numbered ;  1889  saw  the  last 
herd  leave  Texas,  many  of  the  Northern  States  hav 
ing  quarantined  against  us,  and  we  were  afterward 
compelled  to  ship  by  rail  in  filling  contracts  on  the 
upper  ranges. 

When  Kansas  quarantined  against  Texas  cattle, 
Dodge  was  abandoned  as  a  range  market.  The 
trail  moved  West,  first  to  Lakin  and  finally  to  Trail 
City,  on  the  Colorado  line.  In  attempting  to  pass 
the  former  point  with  four  Pan-Handle  herds  in 
the  spring  of  1888,  I  ran  afoul  of  a  quarantine 
convention.  The  cattle  were  under  contract  in 
Wyoming,  and  it  was  my  intention  not  even  to  halt 
the  herds,  but  merely  to  take  on  supplies  in  pass 
ing.  But  a  deputation  met  us  south  of  the  river, 
notifying  me  that  the  quarantine  convention  was 
in  session,  and  requesting  me  not  to  attempt  to  cross 
the  Arkansas.  I  explained  that  my  cattle  were  from 
above  the  dead  line  in  Texas,  had  heretofore  gone 
unmolested  wherever  they  wished,  and  that  it  was 
out  of  my  way  to  turn  west  and  go  up  through 
Colorado.  The  committee  was  reasonable,  looked 


370  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

over  the  lead  herd,  and  saw  that  I  was  driving 
graded  cattle,  and  finally  invited  me  in  to  state  my 
case  before  the  convention.  I  accompanied  the  men 
sent  to  warn  me  away,  and  after  considerable  parley 
I  was  permitted  to  address  the  assembly.  In  a  few 
brief  words  I  stated  my  destination,  where  I  was 
from,  and  the  quality  of  cattle  making  up  my  herds, 
and  invited  any  doubters  to  accompany  me  across 
the  river  and  look  the  stock  over.    Fortunately  a 
number  of  the  cattlemen  in  the  convention  knew 
me,  and  I  was  excused  while  the  assembly  went 
into  executive  session  to  consider  my  case.    Prohi 
bition  was  in  effect  at  Lakin,  and  I  was  compelled 
to  resort  to  diplomacy  in  order  to  cross  the  Arkan 
sas  River  with  my  cattle.     It  was  warm,  sultry 
weather  in  the  valley,  and  my  first  idea  was  to 
secure  a  barrel  of  bottled  beer  and  send  it  over  to 
the  convention,  but  the  town  was  dry.   I  ransacked 
all  the  drug  stores,  and  the  nearest  approach  to 
anything  that  would  cheer  and  stimulate  was  Hos- 
tetter's  Bitters.    The  prohibition  laws  were  being 
rigidly  enforced,  but  I  signed  a  "  death  warrant " 
and  ordered  a  case,  which  the  druggist  refused  me 
until  I  explained  that  I  had  four  outfits  of  men 
with  me  and  that  we  had  contracted  malaria  while 
sleeping  on  the  ground.  My  excuse  won,  and  tak 
ing  the  case  of  bitters  on  my  shoulder,  I  bore  it 
away  to  the  nearest  livery  stable,  where  I  wrote 
a  note,  with  my  compliments,  and  sent  both  by  a 


IN  CONCLUSION  371 

darkey  around  to  the  rear  door  of  the  convention 
hall. 

On  adjournment  for  dinner,  my  case  looked  hope 
less.  There  was  a  strong  sentiment  against  admit 
ting  any  cattle  from  Texas,  all  former  privileges 
were  to  be  set  aside,  and  the  right  to  quarantine 
against  any  section  or  state  was  claimed  as  a  pre 
rogative  of  a  free  people.  The  convention  was  pa 
tiently  listening  to  all  the  oratorical  talent  present, 
and  my  friends  held  out  a  slender  hope  that  once 
the  different  speakers  had  relieved  their  minds  they 
might  feel  easier  towards  me,  and  possibly  an  ex 
ception  would  be  made  in  my  case.  During  the 
afternoon  session  I  received  frequent  reports  from 
the  convention,  and  on  the  suggestion  of  a  friend 
I  began  to  skirmish  around  for  a  second  case  of 
bitters.  There  were  only  three  drug  stores  in  the 
town,  and  as  I  was  ignorant  of  the  law,  I  naturally 
went  back  to  the  druggist  from  whom  I  secured 
the  first  case.  To  my  surprise  he  refused  to  supply 
my  wants,  and  haughtily  informed  me  that  one 
application  a  day  was  all  the  law  permitted  him  to 
sell  to  any  one  person.  Rebuffed,  I  turned  to  an 
other  drug  store,  and  was  greeted  by  the  proprietor, 
who  formerly  ran  a  saloon  in  Dodge.  He  recog 
nized  me,  calling  me  by  name ;  and  after  we  had 
pledged  our  acquaintance  anew  behind  the  prescrip 
tion  case,  I  was  confidentially  informed  that  I  could 
have  his  whole  house  and  welcome,  even  if  the  State 


372  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

of  Kansas  did  object  and  he  had  to  go  to  jail.  We 
both  regretted  that  the  good  old  days  in  the  State 
were  gone,  but  I  sent  around  another  case  of  bitters 
and  a  box  of  cigars,  and  sat  down  patiently  to 
await  results.  With  no  action  taken  by  the  middle 
of  the  afternoon,  I  sent  around  a  third  installment 
of  refreshments,  and  an  hour  later  called  in  person 
at  the  door  of  the  convention.  The  doorkeeper  re 
fused  to  admit  me,  but  I  caught  his  eye,  which  was 
glassy,  and  received  a  leery  wink,  while  a  bottle  of 
bitters  nestled  cosily  in  the  open  bosom  of  his  shirt. 
Hopeful  that  the  signs  were  favorable,  I  apologized 
and  withdrew,  but  was  shortly  afterwards  sent  for 
and  informed  that  an  exception  had  been  made  in 
my  favor,  and  that  I  might  cross  the  river  at  my  will 
and  pleasure.  In  the  interim  of  waiting,  in  case  I 
was  successful,  I  had  studied  up  a  little  speech  of 
thanks,  and  as  I  arose  to  express  my  appreciation, 
a  chorus  of  interruptions  greeted  me :  "  G'  on, 
Eeed!  G'on,  you  d — d  old  co w- thief !  Git  out  of 
town  or  we  '11  hang  you  !  " 

With  the  trail  a  thing  of  the  past,  I  settled 
down  to  the  peaceful  pursuits  of  a  ranchman. 
The  fencing  of  ranges  soon  became  necessary,  the 
Clear  Fork  tract  being  first  inclosed,  and  a  few 
years  later  owners  of  pastures  adjoining  the  Double 
Mountain  ranch  wished  to  fence,  and  I  fell  in  with 
the  prevailing  custom.  On  the  latter  range  I  hold 
title  to  a  little  over  one  million  acres,  while  there 


IN  CONCLUSION  '  373 

are  two  hundred  sections  of  school  land  included  in 
my  western  pasture,  on  which  I  pay  a  nominal  rental 
for  its  use.  All  my  cattle  are  now  graded,  and 
while  no  effort  is  made  to  mature  them,  the  advent 
of  cotton-seed  oil  mills  and  other  sources  of  demand 
have  always  afforded  me  an  outlet  for  my  increase. 
I  have  branded  as  many  as  twenty-five  thousand 
calves  in  a  year,  and  to  this  source  of  income  alone 
I  attribute  the  foundation  of  my  present  fortune. 
As  a  source  of  wealth  the  progeny  of  the  cow  in 
my  State  has  proven  a  perennial  harvest,  with  little 
or  no  effort  on  the  part  of  the  husbandman.  Re 
versing  the  military  rule  of  moving  against  the 
lines  of  least  resistance,  experience  has  taught  me 
to  follow  those  where  Nature  lends  its  greatest 
aid.  Mine  being  strictly  a  grazing  country,  by 
preserving  the  native  grasses  and  breeding  only 
the  best  quality  of  cattle,  I  have  always  achieved 
success.  I  have  brought  up  my  boys  to  observe 
these  economics  of  nature,  and  no  plow  shall  ever 
mar  the  surface  where  my  cows  have  grazed,  gener 
ation  after  generation,  to  the  profit  and  satisfaction 
of  their  owner.  Where  once  I  was  a  buyer  in  car 
load  lots  of  the  best  strains  of  blood  in  the  country, 
now  I  am  a  seller  by  hundreds  and  thousands  of 
head,  acclimated  and  native  to  the  soil.  One  man 
to  his  trade  and  another  to  his  merchandise,  and 
the  mistakes  of  my  life  justly  rebuke  me  for  dally 
ing  in  paths  remote  from  my  legitimate  calling. 


374  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

There  is  a  close  relationship  between  a  cowman 
and  his  herds.  My  insight  into  cattle  character 
exceeds  my  observation  of  the  human  family. 
Therefore  I  wish  to  confess  my  great  love  for  the 
cattle  of  the  fields.  When  hungry  or  cold,  sick 
or  distressed,  they  express  themselves  intelligently 
to  my  understanding,  and  when  dangers  of  night 
and  storm  and  stampede  threaten  their  peace  and 
serenity,  they  instinctively  turn  to  the  refuge  of  a 
human  voice.  When  a  herd  was  bedded  at  night, 
and  wolves  howled  in  the  distance,  the  boys  on 
guard  easily  calmed  the  sleeping  cattle  by  simply 
raising  their  voices  in  song.  The  desire  of  self- 
preservation  is  innate  in  the  animal  race,  but  as 
long  as  the  human  kept  watch  and  ward,  the  sleep 
ing  cattle  had  no  fear  of  the  common  enemy.  An 
incident  which  I  cannot  explain,  but  was  witness  to, 
occurred  during  the  war.  While  holding  cattle 
for  the  Confederate  army  we  received  a  consign 
ment  of  beeves  from  Texas.  One  of  the  men  who 
accompanied  the  herd  through  called  my  attention 
to  a  steer  and  vouchsafed  the  statement  that  the 
animal  loved  music,  —  that  he  could  be  lured  out 
of  the  herd  with  singing.  To  prove  his  assertion, 
the  man  sang  what  he  termed  the  steer's  favorite, 
and  to  the  surprise  of  every  soldier  present,  a  fine, 
big  mottled  beef  walked  out  from  among  a  thou 
sand  others  and  stood  entranced  over  the  simple 
song.  In  my  younger  days  my  voice  was  considered 


IN  CONCLUSION  375 

musical ;  I  could  sing  the  folk-songs  of  my  country 
better  than  the  average,  and  when  the  herdsmen 
left  us,  I  was  pleased  to  see  that  my  vocal  efforts 
fascinated  the  late  arrival  from  Texas.  Within  a 
week  I  could  call  him  out  with  a  song,  when  I 
fell  so  deeply  in  love  with  the  broad-horn  Texan 
that  his  life  was  spared  through  my  disloyalty.  In 
the  daily  issue  to  the  army  we  kept  him  back  as 
long  as  possible ;  but  when  our  supply  was  ex 
hausted,  and  he  would  have  gone  to  the  shambles 
the  following  day,  I  secretly  cut  him  out  at  night 
and  drove  him  miles  to  our  rear,  that  his  life  might 
be  spared.  Within  a  year  he  returned  with  an 
other  consignment  of  beef ;  comrades  who  were  in 
the  secret  would  not  believe  me  ;  but  when  a  quar 
tette  of  us  army  herders  sang  "  Kock  of  Ages," 
the  steer  walked  out  and  greeted  us  with  mute 
appreciation.  We  enjoyed  his  company  for  over  a 
month ,  I  could  call  him  with  a  song  as  far  as  my 
voice  reached,  and  when  death  again  threatened 
him,  we  cut  him  to  the  rear  and  he  was  never 
spoken  again.  Loyal  as  I  was  to  the  South,  I 
would  have  deserted  rather  than  have  seen  that 
steer  go  to  the  shambles. 

In  bringing  these  reminiscences  to  a  close,  I 
wish  to  bear  testimony  in  behalf  of  the  men  who 
lent  their  best  existence  that  success  should  crown 
my  efforts.  Aside  from  my  family,  the  two  plea- 
santest  recollections  of  my  life  are  my  old  army 


376  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

comrades  and  the  boys  who  worked  with  me  on 
the  range  and  trail.  When  men  have  roughed  it 
together,  shared  their  hardships  in  field  and  by 
camp-fire  like  true  comrades,  there  is  an  indescrib 
able  bond  between  them  that  puts  to  shame  any 
pretense  of  fraternal  brotherhood.  Among  the  hun 
dreds,  yes,  the  thousands,  of  men  who  worked  for 
our  old  firm  on  the  trail,  all  feel  a  pride  in  refer 
ring  to  former  associations.  I  never  leave  home 
without  meeting  men,  scattered  everywhere,  many 
of  them  prosperous,  who  come  to  me  and  say,  "  Of 
course  you  don't  remember  me,  but  I  made  a  trip 
over  the  trail  with  your  cattle, — from  San  Saba 
County  in  '77.  Jake  de  Poysterwas  foreman.  By 
the  way,  is  your  old  partner,  the  little  Yankee 
major,  still  living  ? "  The  acquaintance,  thus  re 
newed  by  chance,  was  always  a  good  excuse  for 
neglecting  any  business,  and  many  a  happy  hour 
have  I  spent,  living  over  again  with  one  of  my  old 
boys  the  experiences  of  the  past. 

I  want  to  say  a  parting  word  in  behalf  of  the 
men  of  my  occupation.  Sterling  honesty  was  their 
chief  virtue.  A  drover  with  an  established  reputa 
tion  could  enter  any  trail  town  a  month  in  advance 
of  the  arrival  of  his  cattle,  and  any  merchant  or 
banker  would  extend  him  credit  on  his  spoken 
word.  When  the  trail  passed  and  the  romance  of 
the  West  was  over,  these  same  men  were  in  de 
mand  as  directors  of  banks  or  custodians  of  trust 


IN   CONCLUSION  377 

funds.  They  were  simple  as  truth  itself,  possessing 
a  rugged  sense  of  justice  that  seemed  to  guide  and 
direct  their  lives.  On  one  occasion  a  few  years  ago, 
I  unexpectedly  dropped  down  from  my  Double 
Mountain  ranch  to  an  old  cow  town  on  the  rail 
road.  It  was  our  regular  business  point,  and  I 
kept  a  small  bank  account  there  for  current  ranch 
expenses.  As  it  happened,  I  needed  some  money, 
but  on  reaching  the  village  found  the  banks  closed, 
as  it  was  Labor  Day.  Casually  meeting  an  old 
cowman  who  was  a  director  in  the  bank  with  which 
I  did  business,  I  pretended  to  take  him  to  task  over 
my  disappointment,  and  wound  up  my  arraignment 
by  asking,  "What  kind  of  a  jim-crow  bank  are  you 
running,  anyhow?" 

"  Well,  now,  Reed,"  said  he  in  apology,  "  I 
really  don't  know  why  the  bank  should  close  to-day, 
but  there  must  be  some  reason  for  it.  I  don't  pay 
much  attention  to  those  things,  but  there  's  our 
cashier  and  bookkeeper,  —  you  know  Hank  and 
Bill,  —  the  boys  in  charge  of  the  bank.  Well, 
they  get  together  every  once  in  a  while  and  close 
her  up  for  a  day.  I  don't  know  why  they  do  it, 
but  those  old  boys  have  read  history,  and  you  can 
just  gamble  your  last  cow  that  there  's  good  reasons 
for  closing." 

The  fraternal  bond  between  rangemen  recalls 
the  sad  end  of  one  of  my  old  trail  bosses.  The 
foreman  in  question  was  a  faithful  man,  working 


378  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

for  the  firm  during  its  existence  and  afterwards  in 
my  employ.  I  would  have  trusted  my  fortune  to 
his  keeping,  my  family  thought  the  world  of  him, 
and  many  was  the  time  that  he  risked  his  life  to 
protect  my  interests.  When  my  wife  overlooks  the 
shortcomings  of  a  man,  it  is  safe  to  say  there  is 
something  redeemable  in  him,  even  though  the 
offense  is  drinking.  At  idle  times  and  with  con 
vivial  company,  this  man  would  drink  to  excess, 
and  when  he  was  in  his  cups  a  spirit  of  harmless 
mischief  was  rampant  in  him,  alternating  with 
uncontrollable  flashes  of  anger.  Though  he  was 
usually  as  innocent  as  a  kitten,  it  was  a  deadly  in 
sult  to  refuse  drinking  with  him,  and  one  day  he 
shot  a  circle  of  holes  around  a  stranger's  feet  for 
declining  an  invitation.  A  complaint  was  lodged 
against  him,  and  the  sheriff,  not  knowing  the  man, 
thoughtlessly  sent  a  Mexican  deputy  to  make  the 
arrest.  Even  then,  had  ordinary  courtesy  been 
extended,  the  unfortunate  occurrence  might  have 
been  avoided.  But  an  undue  officiousness  on  the 
part  of  the  officer  angered  the  old  trail  boss,  who 
flashed  into  a  rage,  defying  the  deputy,  and  an 
exchange  of  shots  ensued.  The  Mexican  was  killed 
at  the  first  fire,  and  my  man  mounted  his  horse 
unmolested,  and  returned  to  the  ranch.  I  was 
absent  at  the  time,  but  my  wife  advised  him  to  go 
in  and  surrender  to  the  proper  authorities,  and  he 
obeyed  her  like  a  child. 


IN  CONCLUSION  379 

We  all  looked  upon  him  as  one  of  the  family, 
and  I  employed  the  best  of  counsel.  The  circum 
stances  were  against  him,  however,  and  in  spite  of 
an  able  defense  he  received  a  sentence  of  ten  years. 
No  one  questioned  the  justice  of  the  verdict,  the 
law  must  be  upheld,  and  the  poor  fellow  was  taken 
to  the  penitentiary  to  serve  out  the  sentence.  My 
wife  and  I  concealed  the  facts  from  the  younger 
children,  who  were  constantly  inquiring  after  his 
return,  especially  my  younger  girls,  with  whom  he 
was  a  great  favorite.  The  incident  was  worse  than 
a  funeral ;  it  would  not  die  out,  as  never  a  day 
passed  but  inquiry  was  made  after  the  missing 
man ;  the  children  dreamed  about  him,  and  awoke 
from  their  sleep  to  ask  if  he  had  come  and  if  he 
had  brought  them  anything.  The  matter  finally 
affected  my  wife's  nerves,  the  older  boys  knew  the 
truth,  and  the  younger  children  were  becoming 
suspicious  of  the  veracity  of  their  parents.  The 
truth  was  gradually  leaking  out,  and  after  he  had 
served  a  year  in  prison,  I  began  a  movement  with 
the  view  of  securing  his  pardon.  My  influence  in 
state  politics  was  always  more  or  less  courted,  and 
appealing  to  my  friends,  I  drew  up  a  petition, 
which  was  signed  by  every  prominent  politician  in 
that  section,  asking  that  executive  clemency  be 
extended  in  behalf  of  my  old  foreman.  The  gov 
ernor  was  a  good  friend  of  mine,  anxious  to  render 
me  a  service,  and  through  his  influence  we  managed 


380  REED   ANTHONY,    COWMAN 

to  have  the  sentence  so  reduced  that  after  serving 
two  years  the  prisoner  was  freed  and  returned  to 
the  ranch.  He  was  the  same  lovable  character, 
tolerated  by  my  wife  and  fondled  by  the  children, 
and  he  refused  to  leave  home  for  over  a  year.  Ever 
cautious  to  remove  temptation  from  him,  both  my 
wife  and  I  hoped  that  the  lesson  would  last  him 
through  life,  but  in  an  unguarded  hour  he  took  to 
drink,  and  shot  to  death  his  dearest  friend. 

For  the  second  offense  he  received  a  life  sen 
tence.  My  regret  over  securing  his  pardon,  and 
the  subsequent  loss  of  human  life,  affected  me  as 
no  other  event  has  ever  done  in  my  career.  This 
man  would  have  died  for  me  or  one  of  mine,  and 
what  I  thought  to  be  a  generous  act  to  a  man  in 
prison  proved  a  curse  that  haunted  me  for  many 
years.  But  all  is  well  now  between  us.  I  make  it 
a  point  to  visit  him  at  least  once  a  year ;  we  have 
talked  the  matter  over  and  have  come  to  the  con 
clusion  that  the  law  is  just  and  that  he  must  remain 
in  confinement  the  remainder  of  his  days.  That 
is  now  the  compact,  and,  strange  to  say,  both  of 
us  derive  a  sense  of  security  and  peace  from  our 
covenant  such  as  we  had  never  enjoyed  during 
the  year  of  his  liberty.  The  wardens  inform  me 
that  he  is  a  model  prisoner,  perfectly  content  in 
his  restraint ;  and  I  have  promised  him  that  on  his 
death,  whether  it  occurs  before  or  after  mine,  his 
remains  will  be  brought  back  to  the  home  ranch 


IN   CONCLUSION  381 

and   be    given    a   quiet  grave   in    some    secluded 
spot. 

For  any  success  that  I  may  have  achieved,  due 
acknowledgment  must   be  given  my  helpmate.    I 
was  blessed  with  a  wife  such  as  falls  to  the  lot  of 
few  men.    Once  children  were  born  to  our  union 
and  a  hearthstone  established,  the  family  became 
the  magnet  of  my  life.    It  mattered  not  where  my 
occupation    carried  me,  or  how  long  my  absence 
from  home,  the  lodestar  of  a  wife  and  family  was 
a  sustaining  help.    Our  first  cabin,  long  since  re 
duced  to  ashes,  lives  in  my  memory  as  a  palace. 
I  was  absent  at  the  time  of  its  burning,  but  my 
wife's  father  always  enjoyed  telling  the  story  on 
his  daughter.    The  elder  Edwards  was  branding 
calves  some  five  miles  distant  from  the  home  ranch, 
but  on  sighting  the  signal  smoke  of  the  burning 
house,  he  and  his  outfit  turned  the  cattle  loose, 
mounted  their  horses,  and  rode  to  the  rescue  at  a 
break-neck  pace.    When  they  reached  the   scene 
our  home  was  enveloped  in  flames,  and  there  was 
no  prospect  of  saving  any  of  its  contents.    The 
house  stood  some  distance  from  the  other  ranch 
buildings,  and  as  there  was  no  danger  of  the  fire 
spreading,  there  was  nothing  that  could  be  done 
and  the  flames  held  undisputed  sway.    The  cause 
of  the  fire  was  unknown,  my  wife  being  at  her 
father's  house  at  the  time  ;  but  on  discovering  the 
flames,  she  picked  up  the  baby  and  ran  to  the  burn- 


382  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

ing  cabin,  entered  it  and  rescued  the  little  tin  trunk 
that  held  her  girlhood  trinkets  and  a  thousand  cer 
tificates  of  questionable  land  scrip.  When  the  men 
dashed  up,  my  wife  was  sitting  on  the  tin  trunk, 
surrounded  by  the  children,  all  crying  piteously, 
fully  unconscious  of  the  fact  that  she  had  saved  the 
foundation  of  my  present  landed  holdings.  The 
cabin  had  cost  two  weeks'  labor  to  build,  its  contents 
were  worthless,  but  I  had  no  record  of  the  num 
bers  of  the  certificates,  and  to  my  wife's  presence 
of  mind  or  intuition  in  an  emergency  all  credit  is 
given  for  saving  the  land  scrip.  Many  daughters 
have  done  virtuously,  but  thou  excellest  them  all. 
The  compiling  of  these  memoirs  has  been  a  plea 
sant  task.  In  this  summing-up  of  my  active  life, 
much  has  been  omitted;  and  then  again,  there 
seems  to  have  been  a  hopeless  repetition  with  the 
recurring  years,  for  seedtime  and  harvest  come  to 
us  all  as  the  seasons  roll  round.  Four  of  my  boys 
have  wandered  far  afield,  forging  out  for  themselves, 
not  content  to  remain  under  the  restraint  of  older 
brothers  who  have  assumed  the  active  management 
of  my  ranches.  One  bad  general  is  still  better  than 
two  good  ones,  and  there  must  be  a  head  to  a  ranch 
if  it  is  to  be  made  a  success.  I  still  keep  an  eye 
over  things,  but  the  rough,  hard  work  now  falls  on 
younger  shoulders,  and  I  find  myself  delegated  to 
amuse  and  be  amused  by  the  third  generation  of 
the  Anthonys.  In  spite  of  my  years,  I  still  enjoy 


IN   CONCLUSION  383 

a  good  saddle  horse,  scarcely  a  day  passing  but  I 
ride  from  ten  to  twenty  miles.  There  is  a  range 
maxim  that  "  the  eyes  of  the  boss  make  a  fat  horse," 
and  at  deliveries  of  cattle,  rounds-ups,  and  brand 
ing,  my  mere  presence  makes  things  move  with 
alacrity.  I  can  still  give  the  boys  pointers  in  hand 
ling  large  bodies  of  cattle,  and  the  ranch  outfits 
seem  to  know  that  we  old-time  cowmen  have  little 
use  for  the  modern  picturesque  cowboy,  unless  he 
is  an  all-round  man  and  can  deliver  the  goods  in 
any  emergency. 

With  but  a  few  years  of  my  allotted  span  yet  to 
run,  I  find  myself  in  the  full  enjoyment  of  all  my 
faculties,  ready  for  a  romp  with  my  grandchildren 
or  to  crack  a  joke  with  a  friend.  My  younger  girls 
are  proving  splendid  comrades,  always  ready  for  a 
horseback  ride  or  a  trip  to  the  city.  It  has  always 
been  a  characteristic  of  the  Anthony  family  that 
they  could  ride  a  horse  before  they  could  walk,  and 
I  find  the  third ,  generation  following  in  the  fobt- 
steps  of  their  elders.  My  grandsons  were  all  expert 
with  a  rope  before  they  could  read,  and  it  is  one  of 
the  evidences  of  a  merciful  providence  that  their 
lives  have  been  spared,  as  it  is  nearly  impossible  to 
keep  them  out  of  mischief  and  danger.  To  forbid 
one  to  ride  a  certain  dangerous  horse  only  serves 
to  heighten  his  anxiety  to  master  the  outlaw,  and 
to  banish  him  from  the  branding  pens  means  a 
prompt  return  with  or  without  an  excuse.  On  one 


384  REED   ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

occasion,  on  the  Double  Mountain  ranch,  with  the 
corrals  full  of  heavy  cattle,  I  started  down  to  the 
pens,  but  met  two  of  my  grandsons  coming  up 
the  hiU,  and  noticed  at  a  glance  that  there  had 
been  trouble.  I  stopped  the  boys  and  inquired  the 
cause  of  their  tears,  when  the  youngest,  a  bare 
footed,  chubby  little  fellow,  said  to  me  between  his 
sobs,  "Grandpa,  you'd  —  you'd— you'd  better 
keep  away  from  those  corrals.  Pa 's  as  mad  as  a 
hornet,  and  —  and  —  and  he  quirted  us  —  yes,  he 

did.     If  you  fool  around  down  there,  he  '11 he  '11 

—  he  '11  just  about  wear  you  out." 

Should  this  transcript  of  my  life  ever  reach  the 
dignity  of  publication,  the  casual  reader,  in  giving 
me  any  credit  for  success,  should  bear  in  mind  the 
opportunities  of  my  time.  My  lot  was  cast  with 
the  palmy  days  of  the  golden  West,  with  its  inde 
finable  charm,  now  past  and  gone  and  never  to  re 
turn.  In  voicing  this  regret,  I  desire  to  add  that 
my  mistakes  are  now  looked  back  to  as  the  chas 
tening  rod,  leading  me  to  an  appreciation  of  higher 
ideals,  and  the  final  testimony  that  life  is  well 
worth  the  living. 


CAMBRIDGE  .  MASSACHUSETTS 
U    .    S    •    A 


MRS.  WIGGIN'S  REBECCA 

"  A  character  that  is  irresistible  in  her  quaint, 
humorous  originality."  Cleveland  Leader. 

Mrs.  Wiggin  has  written  a  new  book  under 
the  title  "New  Chronicles  Of  Rebecca"  recount 
ing  certain  episodes  in  the  life  of  Rebecca,  "just 
the  nicest  child  in  American  literature,"  to  quote 
from  Mr.  T.  B.  Aldrich.  "Rebecca's  normal 
spirit  and  good  cheer  are  adorable,"  writes  Mrs. 
Burnett.  Indeed,  Rebecca  is  a  favorite  in  the 
hearts  of  thousands.  She  has  become  almost  a 
national  character.  Her  native  wit  and  the 
wholesome  charm  of  untrammeled  American 
girlhood  brighten  every  page  of  this  new  book. 

Illustrated  by  F.  C.  YOHN.     I2mo,  #1.25. 


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THE  OPENED  SHUTTERS 

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author  has  yet  written."  Boston  Budget. 

"  A  wholesome  picture  of  normal,  wholesome  lives ; 
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as  Mrs.  Burnham  has  ever  done."  Brooklyn  Eagle. 

"  The  love  story  of  Sylvia  and  her  rescuer  is  a  very 
beautiful  one."  Chicago  Journal. 

"  Mrs.  Burnham  has  written  the  book  in  her  hap 
piest  vein.  It  is  brimming  with  dry  humor  and  amus 
ing  characterization."  Lewiston  Evening  Journal. 

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BOOKS  BY  ANDY  ADAMS 

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REED  ANTHONY,  COWMAN 

The  autobiography  of  a  cowboy,  giving  an  interesting 
insight  into  the  old-time  cattle  business. 

THE  LOG  OF  A  COWBOY 

"  Breezy,  natural,  entertaining  and  racy  of  the  soil." 

Chicago  Record- Her  aid. 
Illustrated  by  E.  BOYD  SMITH. 

A  TEXAS  MATCHMAKER 

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of-doors."  San  Francisco  Argonaut. 
Illustrated  by  E.  BOYD  SMITH. 

THE  OUTLET 

"  A  splendid   description   of  a   cattle-drive,  vivid    and 
well  written."  New  York  Life. 

Illustrated  by  E.  BOYD  SMITH. 

CATTLE  BRANDS 

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Boston  Transcript. 
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THE  LITTLE  CHEVALIER 

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Picayune.  Illustrated  by  H.  J.  PECK.  i2mo,  $1.50. 

THE  QUEEN'S  GARDEN 

It  is  a  charming  and  most  artistic  piece  of  fiction  ...  a  delightful 
little  romance,  altogether  as  interesting  as  anything  Mr.  Cable  has  ever 
written.  —  Nashville  Banner.  i6mo,  $1.25. 

UNDER  THE  MAN-FIG 

Mrs.  Davis  writes  of  Texas,  of  plantation  life  and  character,  of  the 
ever-fascinating  negroes  and  the  gentle,  lazy  white  children  of  Sun 
shine  land,  their  pretty  romance,  and  their  patient  suffering.  Her 
story  covers  a  number  of  years  in  time,  and  includes  a  wide  and  varied 
range  of  characters.  It  is  full  of  romance  and  mystery,  with  an  inter 
est  steadily  cumulating  to  the  close.  —  Chicago  Interior.  i6mo,  $1.25. 

THE  WIRE  CUTTERS 

The  principal  scenes  of  the  novel  are  laid  in  Louisiana  and  Texas, 
and  it  takes  its  name  from  the  desperate  and  prolonged  struggle  waged 
with  indomitable  energy  and  pluck  by  the  rural  classes  of  the  latter 
state  against  what  they  deemed  the  outrageous  and  unwarranted  fenc 
ing  in  of  their  broad  acres,  once  as  free  as  the  very  air.  There  is  a 
love  story  in  which  the  interest  never  flags.  —  New  Orleans  States. 
Crown  8vo,  $1.50. 

THE  PRICE  OF  SILENCE 

A  romance  of  modern  New  Orleans,  with  a  lively  movement  and  a 
charming  setting.  Illustrated  by  GRISWOLD  TYNG.  121110,  $1.50. 


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